The Justification of Things
by Tevivo
Summary: Thirty years later, Kagome lets Inuyasha go. With a failed marriage at his back and thirty years of abuse to get over, Inuyasha starts over in a world that no longer feels like his own. Meanwhile, Sesshomaru doesn't understand why everybody keeps insisting he's in love with his abomination of a brother. He's not. Really. [Inucest. Teen, for now.]
1. Sera Que Erro Meu

_.s.s.s._

 _Warnings: M/M relationship. Incest. Abusive relationship (between Kagome and Inuyasha, not the bros). Protective/possessive Sesshomaru. Top Sesshomaru. Dom/sub undertones. Talk of Mpreg, I don't think I'm actually gonna include it though. Kagome...bashing? (basically she WAS in a very long abusive relationship with Inuyasha, and did a lot of bad things. I tried not to demonize her, though. She only shows up in the first chapter, so if you hate my portrayal of her, just endure the 2,000 or so words she appears in.) OC-Sesshomaru has a little kid. He's adorable, but also pretty spoiled._

 _Basically, this fic is a short exploration of what would've happened if Inuyasha and Kagome did really end up marrying each other and living in her time, but mostly a story about how Inuyasha and Sesshomaru get together._

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 _I am looking at the face of evil_ Kagome thought as she examined the overweight, middle aged woman looking back at her. _And I don't even know how it turned out to be this way._

She looked in the mirror, pursing her lips and watching the middle aged woman do the same.

She figured that it was something like her looks. At 45, now, she was no longer the pretty girl she'd been when she'd met Inuyasha. That girl had a trim waist, a full figure, and a beautiful unlined face. Now? She was fat, ugly, wrinkled, and saggy. She was disgusting, and she couldn't even place when she'd gotten this way.

Because it had been slow. It had been understandable. Of course, with three children, she'd have gained a little bit of weight. Of course, her metabolism would slow with age. It was only natural. Of course, the lines would begin to show, and the skin would dry. Of course, her hair would thin and coarsen with age. It was a natural process, and she could diet later. She would get those expensive skin creams as soon as they went on sale. And besides, loafers were so much more practical than fancy heels.

And then BAM. One day she looked in the mirror, and she was downright matronly.

So of course it was the same thing in her relationship. The changes happened slowly, gradually.

Because she loved Inuyasha, and so she needed to help him adjust to her time. And he was so clueless and loud and angry, so of course she had to teach him that wasn't acceptable here. And she wasn't going to allow him to treat her with disrespect. A few well places "sit's" would teach him that.

And Inuyasha himself really didn't help matters. He was-

 _Victim Blaming_ her daughter's little pamphlet on abuse seemed to scream at her in her mind, and she forcibly tamped it down.

It wasn't abuse. _It wasn't._

Anyhow, Inuyasha didn't help matters in any way. First of all, he was rude for just the longest time. So of course she had to "sit" that out of him. She wouldn't be talked to that way, and she couldn't have any of her friends seeing him talk to her that way.

But somehow, underneath all the bluster, his love for her didn't really have any limits. So he kept...changing. And she thought it was so good. He was changing for her. Becoming better. More polite. Better dressed. Took better care of himself. It was...perfect.

And after a few years of good behavior, it was _her_ that mentioned finally taking off the beads. But it was Inuyasha who said no. He said he liked them. That they were something of hers, that he felt weird without them.

 _Stockholm Syndrome. Conditioning. Learned Masochism._

She shoved those words down too. It wasn't possible. Inuyasha was just...good. Devoted. He'd died for her, for heaven's sake. It was little surprise he would change his wardrobe for her, too.

And his personality.

And what he wanted to do with his life.

And his home.

And….and everything.

She stomped down the stairs, and he was cooking dinner. Of course, she'd started out being the one who cooked. But then she went to college and there were long hours and projects and work, and she'd set her foot down. "You can at least do _something_ ," She'd said, and he'd been cooking for them ever since.

And somehow, she'd ended up in exactly the opposite position than she'd always imagined herself. She'd always thought that she would be a housewife. You know. Drop out of college to get married and have lots of babies.

But Inuyasha couldn't go to school, get a job. He...he had long white hair and dog ears, for crying out loud. And sure, they put a hat on him and cut his hair bi-weekly, but that didn't hide everything. And it certainly didn't hide his lack of any form of ID. So she worked, and he stayed at home and did the rest.

It wasn't even, not by a long shot. She worked twenty hours a week at a nice, well paying job, but she told him it was forty so she could have some time to herself every day. It was irresponsible, but they did have enough money coming in from the Shrine, and it wasn't like he did _that much_ at home, she'd reasoned.

Now, watching him labor over the stove as he talked on the phone with their oldest, she wondered if she wasn't a little bit wrong about that.

She wondered if she'd been a little bit wrong about everything.

That stupid pamphlet.

"Inuyasha," She greeted as she came down the stairs, and he grinned at her as she arrived, but didn't approach. Guilt flashed briefly in her chest once more.

It had been ten years since they'd last slept together, and seven since they'd kissed. It was at her insistence, too. It was weird, though! He'd aged maybe three years since they'd gotten together, thirty years ago. She was in her forties now-kissing an eighteen year old's lips made her feel like a freaking pedophile. He looked younger than their two oldest children now.

It was weird.

But it wasn't like _he_ didn't want to. He'd been so disappointed when they'd stopped. He assured her every day how much he thought she was beautiful and sexy to him. But he didn't press, because he didn't want her to get angry. He just...listened to her. Did what she wanted.

"I want you to put one hand behind your back," Kagome said, suddenly desperate to see him resist her for a change. Surely he wouldn't-

But he was already putting one hand behind his back, looking confused. "Ooookay. Why?"

"Because I said so!" And she knew she was being a brat, but he didn't have to flinch like that at her voice, as if she was going to beat him or something.

 _Or slam him to the ground with a word._

"Okay. Sorry I asked." He answered, and the worst part was he wasn't even sarcastic when he said it. He was genuinely sorry for upsetting her, and it killed her inside.

There was no way. No way this was anything like that stupid pamphlet.

 _It wasn't._

"Keep cooking like that." She ordered, making her voice dangerous. He shrugged and _nodded._ Went about cooking dinner, using only one hand. She almost broke down when she saw him struggling to chop tomatoes one handed.

She noticed how his face scrunched up in frustration, poking at the tomatoes with the blunt tip of his finger. Why was he- _oh._

 _His claws._

His claws that they'd decided to permanently blunt. No, who was she even kidding? She decided it. They were dangerous, she'd insisted. Think of the children, she'd said, and he'd just done anything she asked him to. So they did the spell, purified the water, used holy energy to make it so they couldn't grow back.

She'd declawed him like a common beast.

No, she-she couldn't-if only she could just make him yell at her, fight with her, now. It would prove that this was only her own paranoia. He was fine. He was-

"Sit." She ordered, and oooh, that was a terrible idea. Both of his hands flew out in the tiny space. The hand with the knife fumbled out from under him as he fell, and she watched as blood spurted over the counter and floor. The other swept out to gain purchase, and pulled down the boiling pot of curry on top of him. He lay there passively as the curry burned into his skin, waiting for the spell to wear off.

"I'm so sorry!" He cried when he got up. "I completely ruined dinner."

She felt like she was going to be sick. "Your face." She said numbly. He brought his hand up to where the knife had sliced open his cheek, and winced.

"Yeah. It's a lot of blood, but we both know I've had worse." He shrugged. "I'll clean it up right away. Do you mind if I order takeout for dinner, though? It'll take a while to make something else, so that'll probably be easiest."

"Yeah, sure. I don't care, but...I'm sorry. That must've really hurt."

Bizarrely, Inuyasha smiled genuinely and sweetly at this, hiding a blush behind his hand. "What?" Kagome asked, blinking in confusion. He only shook his head, coming closer to her.

"I just...it makes me really happy when you care for me like that." He ducked his head shyly, and she felt her gut twist.

"Well, then I better do it more, then." She choked out. That...wasn't caring, what she'd done. She'd injured him to an extent that would throw a normal person in the hospital. She'd hurt him without even having a reason to at all, and then she'd done the bare minimum and given a half-sincere apology. And instead of being rightfully angry with her, instead of yelling at her, he'd thanked her, shyly and sweetly, for her abuse.

 _For her abuse_. It was time to face the facts. Somehow, she'd managed to put herself into an abusive relationship, and she was the abuser. She was an abuser.

She actively tamped down the new need to hurl, and tried to at least show him a bit more kindness, to make up for a lifetime of mistakes. "Here, come here and I'll take care of that. That's right, just sit ri-"

Inuyasha slammed to the ground at her feet, and blood splattered over the floor. It was too much. Even when she tried to be nice, she- she burst into tears. She was, was, downright awful.

 _Evil._ Her mind supplied.

She raced upstairs to her bedroom, to escape what she had done.

It took her about an hour of sobbing in her room to decide on a plan of action. Meanwhile, Inuyasha knocked on the door and forgave her. He pronounced his love and left the takeout by the door. "I'll sleep on the couch," He announced. "I'm messing everything up tonight, I can get if you don't want me around."

She sobbed even harder, torn apart by the terrible unfairness of it all.

She needed to leave him. Or rather, she needed to send him back to where he'd come from in the first place. It wasn't good for him to be in her time, forced to change himself. Locked up in a house with no escape, subjected to an abusive relationship he can't even recognize as being toxic. No. He needed to go back to the beginning. To be free again. Like he was when they met.

Their kids were old, now. The oldest two had already left the house, one married and the other at school. Even the youngest was seventeen, now. They would be fine, even without him. Kagome would be fine. She'd...well, she'd been having an affair for months now, with Inuyasha's knowledge. She could always marry that guy, or...not. Or just be independant. She didn't need a man to control her.

She needed a man to control, apparently, and the thought brought on a whole new wave of tears.

No. No more. In the morning, she was going to cut the cord on this toxic relationship, and send him back to where he belonged.

Inuyasha didn't get it, of course. She cried to herself as he pleaded with her not to do this.

"I'll change!" He insisted, "I'll be better!"

She said it wasn't that, and he only insisted harder.

"I told you I was fine with Takahashi-san. I get it, Kagome. I understand that I'm not enough for you. Just-just-let me be something to you!"

"So, what? I should keep you as my slave? My 'second husband' who I just order around?"

"You can." Inuyasha had whispered, but Kagome shook her head.

"I can't live like that, with that kind of guilt on my chest. There's one more trip left in the Well. We've been saving it, but...I think it's best if you use it now."

He'd still argued, pressed for a few more weeks, months with her, but she knew if he stayed, she'd never work up the nerve to do this again.

"I can-"

"No!"

"But, you-"

"I told you, I just can't!"

"I-"

"Inuyasha, so help me-if you stay here I will be miserable! I will forever keep myself from happiness because of you, and I can't live like that anymore, so I want you to leave! Not three months from now. Not three weeks from now. Not the freaking minutes from now. It has to be now. I have your things here, just take them and _go._ "

She knew there was no way he could argue with that. Her heart felt numb as she watched him break at her words, but she told herself it was for the best. A clean break, so he could get back to healing.

She'd packed up a veritable ton of ramen in the bag, with a playlist of his favorite songs, a few choice momentos, and his sword and fire rat robes. Things he hadn't touched in thirty years. Things she knew would remind him of her, but she couldn't stop herself from including anyways.

"I'm doing what's best for you," She assured him, as he looked morosely at the depths of the well.

He nodded dumbly. "I love you." Was his response. "Could you...could you tell the kids I love them, too?"

"They'll be fine, Inu. They're all grown up, now. They don't need you anymore." Kagome reassured, but he only seemed to get sadder at that.

"Can you just...please tell them for me?"

"Of course."

And then he jumped in the well, and that was the end.

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Once upon a time, a little girl found a wild dog in the forest. The dog was angry and mean, but ever so lonely. So she took it in and showered it with love. But it was a dog, so she trained it well, and taught it to obey her commands and rely on her for everything. The dog was ever so happy to please her.

But then the little girl got older and wiser, and thought she knew what was best. So she returned the dog to the wild, where she thought it fit best. But it had already changed. It had become soft and docile in its captivity, and no longer knew how to fend for itself.

This is the story of that dog.


	2. As Lembrancas Vao Na Mala

_A/N here! Thank you for all your lovely reviews! I will be responding to them at the bottom of the chapter. :)_

 _Just FYI, I will probably be updating this once a week, on random days. I have a bunch written already, but sometimes, like with this chapter EXTENSIVE revisions are needed before it becomes half coherent. (my first draft was basically Inuyasha was sad. He laid in the well. He got up. He walked around. And all that nonsense. Still not 100% happy with how it turned out in the ends, but there were a lot of set up I had to get in, that I had literally no desire to write. But I hope you guys like it anyways.)_

 _if anybody got confused because I posted a chapter, and then there was nothing, and then I actually posted a chapter an hour later, its because I accidentally posted the wrong document the first time. Whoops. My bad._

OOOOOOOOOOO

He wished he'd at least had a ring. Not to pine over. Hell, no. But to...chuck into the woods or something. For closure or whatever. Because, right now, he'd ended a thirty year relationship, and all he had to show for it was a bag full of ramen and an iPod.

He felt empty.

Had it really been so easy to just throw him away like some broken doll? Because, obviously, that was all he was to her.

A doll. To play with and dress and pamper. To fit into the role she wanted. To move around and pretend like it was talking, and it wasn't her own voice.

He'd stopped being human to her a long time ago.

He knew it. He'd felt the shift as she slowly realized what a freak he was. She stopped letting him go out in public. Started getting embarrassed by his weird mannerisms. Told him to stop sniffing the ground like a dog and act normal for once.

"Of course I accept you, Inuyasha. But the rest of the world doesn't, so it's best if you just stay inside." And that was the real kicker, wasn't it? She was right. Even if she couldn't accept everything, she was the one who had accepted the most.

So he tried to be better for her. Conform to her needs and wants.

But it wasn't enough.

Because he could never be what she needed, no matter how hard he tried. He was...a hanyou. Strange and unwelcome and...unrealistic. He couldn't get a job for her. Couldn't provide for her. Couldn't be the stable husband she could show off to her friends.

He couldn't even go outside.

So he tried to be what he could. Take care of the kids. Make the meals. Clean the house. Slowly get a grip on the technology that still seemed like magic to him.

Cut his hair. That had been a hard thing. Youkai hair was important. It was a sign of status. The longer the hair, the more royal the youkai. And his hair had always been so long and beautiful...it reminded him, even at his worst, that he was worth something. That he was the son of royalty.

She'd cut it without a second thought. "Quit complaining. You look like one of those divas from America's Next Top Model. Next you'll be crying as if I'm cutting off a limb or something."

His ears had drooped in humiliation. He wanted to cry. It felt like she was cutting a limb off.

He didn't actually say it, though, he'd already tried to explain, and she hadn't listened. Or didn't care. Really, sometimes it was all the same.

But the hair grew back. His claws didn't. Not with how much holy water she used in the cutting of them. His fingers were burned up to the middle joint, scarred and ugly. They no longer hurt, but.

He couldn't even look at them.

He wanted to have a ring. Something so that when he looked at his hands, he could be happy. He could remember their love and what he did all this for.

But they weren't even technically married, since he had no documents, and marriages and weddings cost money. Not to mention, they were public, and Inuyasha stopped being allowed in public within the first year.

"We don't need that sort of ceremony." Kagome had just rolled her eyes, curling further into his lap. "We both know we love each other, so why do e need to spend the money to prove it?"

And he'd agreed, and that was that.

But he really should've carved a ring or something, because right now it was feeling an awful lot like there had never been a marriage to end in the first place.

He'd been her toy. Her pet. Her...he would be anything for her. He would do anything for her.

It wasn't enough.

He wasn't enough.

He lay in the well, wanting to die.

OOOOOOOOOOOOO

Inuyasha lay for hours at the foot of the well, thoughts spiraling darker and darker.

Really, it was a miracle she hadn't kicked him out sooner.

He was loud, he was annoying. He was needy. He never used enough spices in their food, and always forgot to make a dessert. His body wasn't even desirable to get anymore. He was ugly. A worn out soul in a too-young body. He looked about as old as their kids-

Their kids.

Did they even know he was gone? Probably not, it seemed like a quick decision on Kagome's part. At least, it m took him by surprise and he still lives with her.

Lived.

Lived with her.

Depression churned in his gut. Would they even miss him? Would they even care?

Ai, the oldest, would miss him for sure. She was only a year into marriage, and was always calling him up for advice on cooking and cleaning. _What's your cake recipe?_ _What's that spice you put in the ramen to make it so good? What's the best thing to take blood out of sheets? Oh, don't get all worried-it's just my time of the month._ The calls were almost daily.

Suddenly he remembered countless conversations they'd had. _Why don't you leave Mom? You could do so much better than her! Don't let her treat you like that!_ Maybe...maybe she had talked to Kagome? Maybe she'd been the one to convince Kagome to make him leave?

Kagome's words rang in his head. _Quit being naive, babe. Ai doesn't actually love you, she's just using you to pay for her groceries. Quit letting her play you like that._

Maybe...maybe they'd agreed, the two women. Maybe they both thought they were better off without him.

Ai had been so excited, though, when she'd gotten pregnant. _You're going to be the best grandpa ever!_ She'd said to him, detailing how he would be sure to spoil their little boy. Well, it looked like that wasn't going to ever happen. He wouldn't even get to see the baby. He wouldn't even get to see the ultrasound.

He lay at the bottom of the well, unable find the will to stand. Maybe if he stayed here long enough, Kagome would change her mind. Bring him back.

Fat chance.

He thought about their middle child.

Kazumi...Kazumi was pretty independant, actually. He called home maybe twice a month, and always said how well he was doing for himself at college. Kazumi wouldn't miss him. He already had his life, he didn't need his useless dad anymore.

And Chiyo? The youngest? Forget it. Just last night, they'd gotten into a fight, and she'd yelled, _Stay out of my life!_ She'd be happy to see him gone.

Thirty years of carefully loving and taking care of their family, and what did he have to show for it?

Not a ring, that was for sure.

He sighed again, looking up at the sky and forgetting what it was to move.

He stayed there for days.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

When he finally left the well, he changed into his old fire rat robe. It was...important, he thought. To pack up the clothes from his life with Kagome, and transition back into this world.

The fabric should have been familiar and comforting. It should have felt like coming home. Instead, it felt all wrong. Itchy on his skin, and too hot for the already warm weather. It was too loose, and bunched up in uncomfortable places. At once, it felt too large and too small, as if he was putting on someone else's outfit.

They smelled of mold and mothballs, probably from sitting in the old shed for thirty years. It was disgusting, and foreign, and-no. No. He couldn't do this. He rummaged through the pack, and-there. His favorite perfume. He spritzed it on himself twice, smiling as the familiar scent of 'cool sea breeze' washed over him.

Kagome'd made fun of him so much for his girly perfume, but in the end, he just couldn't stomach the strong, ugly scents of the male brands. He'd latched onto this sweet, pure scent, and never really given it up. Now, it was a scent that comforted him more than a warm blanket.

Feeling better with it on, he took off in the direction of the village. He wanted to see how Miroku and Sango were doing after all these years.

He didn't talk to them. He didn't even let them see him. He sat on a high tree branch and let them think he was still happily married in a far away land.

He didn't want to disappoint them.

And besides. They were different people, now. They were so...old. Sango already had a head full of greys, and Miroku was actually balding. Both of them were still pretty fit, though, and after only a few minutes, it became clear why.

They were still hunting demons. He watched as both of them held training sessions for villagers on self defense and demon killing. They were obviously the leaders of this newer village, and everybody seemed to go to them for advice. In the short few hours he'd watched them, they'd taught fighting techniques, handed out food to widows, counselled about the current crop situation, and even blessed babies.

They were everywhere.

And so happy, too. It was obvious, from the carefree smiles on their faces, and the quiet peace in their step.

He wasn't going to ruin that. He slung his bag over his shoulder and ran away.

This was uncomfortable. How had he ever relaxed like this? He closed his eyes in sheer determination. He knew he liked this. He'd slept like this for a hundred years or more. But….

The tree branch was too small. He adjusted himself for the thousandth time, trying to relax against it. He was going to sleep in this tree if it killed him. It was fine. It was way comfortable, and-there was a little knob of bark digging into his back. A mini-branch poked his thigh, no matter what position he tried. The branch was too small, and felt like it was shoving into his butt crack, and that alone.

It was awful.

If he only had a pillow-no. He could do this he was fine. Great. Awesome.

"So." A tiny voice piped up from another branch, and he wasn't quite surprised. He'd sensed a weak youkai near him, but he hadn't expected it to actually talk to him. "Come here often?" The voice continued in a suggestive tone, and he spun around to face the speaker.

And laughed.

It was a little kid, maybe five years old, but he looked like a mini Sesshomaru, as if that wasn't the most bizarre thing ever. He had the same narrow eyes and arched brows, even if his hair was black and eyes were blue. The markings, though. The markings were identical.

"Was that a flirtation?" Inuyasha raised an eyebrow.

The kid smirked up at him arrogantly, as if he was an adult capable of seduction, and not still in pull ups. "Do you want it to be?"

"Dude, you're like two feet tall." Inuyasha scoffed, looking the kid up and down.

The kid flushed, but recovered. "I don't need to be tall to appreciate a beautiful creature like yourself." He lowered his voice in an attempt to seem older, and Inuyasha laughed out loud.

"Okay, kid. No, sorry, I don't go for children. Maybe next time, pick up someone your own size?" The kid looked way too disappointed at that. Surely, he was expecting to be rejected?

"But I want you." He whined, and Inuyasha picked his tiny body up and held him over a hip, standing now.

Well, the sleep in a tree thing wasn't working out anyways. Might as well talk to the kid a bit.

"Nope, sorry. If my kids are older than you, it's too much of an age difference. Sorry squirt, better luck next time. Now, let's find your parents?"

"I don't have any." The kid scowled at him.

"Then, a caretaker, at least? You're way too young to be alone like this." the kid shook his head mutinously.

"I ran away from home."

"Now, why did you do something like that?" Inuyasha asked, leaning on the tree trunk, and looking the boy in the eyes. He sobered. "Was something...happening?"

The kid frowned deeper, lower lip jutting out.

"My dad's a jerk." The kid sulked. "He keeps making me study and train, and I don't wanna do it no more. Also, he never pays any attention to me. He's always either working on his war, or paying attention to my sister and brother. I don't even think he noticed I'm gone."

"That sucks. And your mom?"

"She died." He said, in that blunt way of speaking little kids tend to have. "So we went to live with my dad. But he's so _mean."_

"And we is…"

"Me and my sister. She's just a baby, though."

"I see." Inuyasha paused. That didn't seem too strange. A single dad was probably struggling to find time for anything, so a new kid jumping into that would be pretty hard. "How long have you been living with him?"

"A few months." The kid shrugged, blue eyes trained at the ground.

"So, don't you think you should give it some time?" Inuyasha suggested. "He's probably having a hard time getting used to having kids, just like you're having a hard time getting used to having a dad."

"Yeah, well that's why I left. So I wouldn't be a bother to him anymore."

"Well, I hate to break it to ya, kid, but he's probably even more worried about you, now that you're gone."

The kid made a miserable face. "You really think so?"

"I know so." Inuyasha took the kid's hand in his own. "Now, let's get back to him. I'll take you."

The kid's face scrunched up as tears began to fill his eyes. "But he's going to kill me!" He suddenly wailed, and began crying in earnest. "He awready hates me, and now I just-I just-he's gonna kill meee!"

Inuyasha panicked as he always did when children cried. What was he supposed to do about this? He pulled the child into his arms. "Shhh, shhh. Don't worry, it'll be fine. I'll make sure he doesn't kill you, okay? I'll explain everything when we find him, so…"

"You don' understand! He'll kill you first, jus' for bein' near me, an' then he'll kill me dead for runnin' away!" The kid wailed through his tears.

"I'd like to see him try," Inuyasha blustered, unconsciously hiding his ruined claws from the child's vision. "I've taken on demons twice as strong as your dad before."

"No way. You never even seen my dad. He's the strongest in the whole world."

Inuyasha thought of Tetsusaiga, Naraku, and his brother's poison claws. "I can handle him."

"No you can't! He's a daiyoukai!"

"I've fought daiyoukai!"

"Well, not my dad!"

Inuyasha snarled in frustration. This was getting him nowhere. The kid's tears were still flowing, but he was angry now and yelling. "Who is your dad, then, and I'll tell you if I have."

"My dad is Sesshomaru, Lord of the Western Lands!" The kid yelled, and Inuyasha's heart plummeted to his stomach.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Inuyasha was so screwed. So very, very screwed. He trudged through the forest, Sesshomaru'skid slung across his back. _Sesshomaru's kid._ If that wasn't the weirdest thing in the world, he didn't know what was. He didn't even know the bastard had a kid.

He glanced back at the little boy, studying his features. By the looks of it, he was about fifty. So, when they were fighting Naraku, Sesshomaru already had a kid running around, and didn't even tell anyone.

Well, not that that was surprising, anyways. His brother could probably get some sort of award for being the most secretive demon alive.

But still.

A mini-Sesshomaru was sleeping in his arms, and he had no idea how they got to this point. But, judging by what the kid said earlier, Sesshomaru himself might not have known. They did only come to live with the youkai a few months prior.

And Sesshomaru was taking care of them? Or did they have nannies? The kid seemed to imply they didn't, but Inuyasha couldn't imagine his brother taking care of kids for a second. Childcare and Sesshomaru just didn't mix.

He did remember that one little human brat always following the youkai around. Maybe it was something like that? If that was the case, it wasn't surprising the kid had run away. It must be terribly dull to always have to follow Sesshomaru around everywhere.

But the kid had a baby sister...who took care of her? Maybe there was a nanny added to their little travelling party.

It was weird. No matter what the setup was, it was weird, and didn't match with the image of an unflappably cruel demonlord he'd always associated with Sesshomaru.

He picked up his pace. The faster he could find the prick and return the brat, the faster this would be over with, and he could stop getting these disturbing images of Sesshomaru and children out of his mind.

"What happened to your hands?" The kid was awake now, and asking all sorts of uncomfortable questions. _Do you have any kids? Are they my age? How can they be older if you're so young? How old are you? Where are your kids? Why aren't you with them? Where's your mate?_

"They're far away. In another dimension, with my mate." He'd answered the last ones with an uncomfortable weight on his chest, as if his lungs couldn't get enough air.

"Oh. Why aren't you there?"

"I didn't really have a choice."

And the kid had been silent for more than a few moments, before he started up with the questions again, asking about his ears, and his hair, and now this.

"My...my mate did it. It was more convenient this way." He answered shortly.

"Your mate cut off your claws?" the kid asked, and Inuyasha nodded, looking away. "And cut your hair...and gave you kids...gave you kids without you wanting to...and trapped you in a dimension, and now trapped you out?"

"No-yes-it's complicated. Look, kid, I'm fine. Just leave it."

"Okay." The kid sighed. "But I'm not a kid. Stop calling me one."

"Oh really?" Inuyasha raised a brow. "Then what should I call you? Shorty?"

"No!" The kid slapped at Inuyasha's shoulder. "My name! Tatsuya."

"All right, Ta-chan." Inuyasha rolled his eyes, grinning as the kid let out a groan of embarrassment at the moniker. "I'll just-"

They both froze as a familiar scent hit their noses. Inuyasha spun around to the direction it was coming from, heart pounding. He was coming towards them, and quickly. Inuyasha braced himself, hand moving to his sword.

But no matter how much he readied himself to see his brother again after thirty years, he could have never prepared himself for the sight that met him as his brother entered the clearing.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

 _There you go! Hope you like it, and it all basically made sense. Please tell me what you think/if you have any questions!_

 _James Birdsong- Thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed :)_

 _no fan of kikyo- I laughed out loud at your comment. I am a fan of this idea, but actually I have more in mind that she like...lives her life with some old, balding, boring husband, and her kids never speak to her again because they never forgive her for what she did to their dad. And she just lives a miserable, small little life. (cue my evil laughter) but yeah, I like your interpretation. Accidental, immediate, dismemberment. Perfect._

 _ToLazyToLogin-Thank you! I am excited for this story-I hope you like it :)_

 _sherryfanfic1999-Thank you for your detailed review! I love long reviews like yours, they make me very happy. Um, yes she did take the beads off...did I seriously forget to add that scene? I am the literal worst. I will have to add it later in an extremely dramatic flashback. Thanks for reminding me, haha. The rest of your questions were really good! Rest assured, I have already thought of an will answer them as the story goes on. But, yes. By the end, Inuyasha will have a happy family with Sessh. And, no worries. After these two chapters, The story gets a lot happier. Inu will still have his residual pain, and stuff, but I'm not too good with excessive angst, so this will mostly be a happy story about how Sessh and Inu finally get together._

 _I.I.S.-Jo gustei de sua comentario...jo hablo un pouquito de espanhol, pero hablo portugues mejor. Asi que, jo voy escrever tudo errado. Voltando a assunto, pobre Inuyasha mesmo! Pero, No se preocupe, elle va ser mas feliz depos esse capitulo. Gracias por ter comentado! :)_

 _Jelly Me-Thank you for your comment! Yeah, I think pretty much everybody does take it as a joke, which is okay. I went all through middle school reading the manga and laughing along with everyone else. It wasn't until high school that I was finally like...wait. We are literally all laughing at an abusive relationship here. (funny side note about my awkward teenager self-Face Down became like my favorite song ever, and I always imagined Inuyasha as the girl, and angsted over the song. What even was my childhood) But thank you so much for the nice things you said! I'm glad you think this is different, I was so worried I was just falling into the same mold of "Kagome breaks up with inuyasha, Inuyasha finds comfort in his brother's arms" stories that I love way too much._

 _matchynishi-Thanks! I totally have never been on this ship, just because of how I've always thought it would realistically pan out. Yeah. I feel like I sometimes overanalyze stuff too much, but I'm not suuuper comfortable with the whole "I punch my boyfriend" jokes that happen in every anime ever. (see my above comment for more on this) Thank you so much for commenting! I love these more detailed comments, because it lets me know I'm doing something right. I hope you like the rest :)_


	3. Voce do Meu Lado

_A/N: A new chapter! Yay! (sorry, aiming for a week between posts, I ended up only managing a week and a half. Whoops)_

 _Important note. Demonic society is way different than our own, and operated under different assumptions than ours. I actually thought about it a lot before writing this story. So, the biggest thing is this: For us, sex and gender are pretty much synonymous, societally. (Of course I know about the current movements to change this. But in general.) For demons, I imagine that they would have very clear gender lines. (Anthropological theory suggests that gender roles were formed in order to protect individual family units in times when survival was key. Men and women separated jobs because it was necessary to do so for survival, as there weren't babysitters or other things we have today that make blurring those lines easier. Another example-marriage was designed to tie men to women so they wouldn't leave them when they were pregnant. It was more about survival than what it's become today [true love, etc]) So basically, demons are survival based creatures, who trust no one but their own family unit. Strong gender roles would naturally form as a result. However because ~demon magic~ either sex can carry and provide for a child, so those gender roles are seen as completely separate from the sex of a person. So to prevent confusion, I am going to call the 'women' demons, that hold the gender roles we associate with women, 'submissives' and the other ones 'dominant'. It's not really a dom/sub thing though. It's just a different society._

 _TL;DR the submissives hold the female role in demon society. The dominants hold the male role in society, but there are female dominants and male submissives and that aint no thing for them because in demon society sex hold basically as much say over your identity as hair color._

 _Okay, sorry, bye. Responses to comments are at the bottom._

OoOoOoO

"Tatsuya, thank the-" Sesshomaru burst into the clearing, then immediately brought himself up short. He made eye contact with Inuyasha, the world seeming to stop around them.

There was utter silence between them, and Inuyasha really got a chance to look at his brother, and see how he'd changed.

He was...unkempt. His hair, always so perfect, was messily thrown into a loose, low ponytail, but strands were sticking out, as if tiny hands had pulled them free.

And there was a baby strapped to his chest, so that was actually probably what had happened. A single lock was pulled taught in the baby's hands, and it sighed happily, drooling all over it. Weird. Inuyasha didn't even think Sesshomaru could hold children without breaking them.

His armor was missing, too, probably so the child didn't get impaled by those spikes on the front of it. His white kimono was swapped for a darker, plainer style. It lay open, slightly, a small strip of his collar showing. A dark wet spot rested on his chest, near the baby's mouth. His sleeves were a mess of stains and frays that the Sesshomaru Inuyasha knew would never allow.

"Ummmm…." Inuyasha coughed, trying to figure out what to say, and Sesshomaru suddenly straightened his back, face turning from shock to the unemotional mask Inuyasha was familiar with.

"Inuyasha." Sesshomaru nodded, face carefully blank. "I wasn't aware you were alive."

"Sorry to disappoint." Inuyasha answered sarcastically, pulling his head back and trying to seem as unaffected. "I, uh, found your kid."

"I see that."

Silence echoed throughout the clearing. This was stupid. What did Inuyasha think was going to happen? It wasn't like Sesshomaru was going to thank him or anything. Honestly, he was lucky the bastard hadn't run him through by now.

"Welp, uh, yeah. I'm gonna go. Here's your kid, he's fine. Not hurt or anything. So. Yeah. Bye." Inuyasha started to back away uncomfortably, feeling foolish. He turned around to go, and suddenly Sesshomaru was in his space, blocking him. "Whoa! Whoa-personal space!" Inuyasha stumbled back, and Sesshomaru grabbed his arm to right him.

"Inuyasha. I thought you were dead." Sesshomaru's voice was low and dangerous, and Inuyasha suddenly got the distinct sense that if he answered this question wrong, he'd probably lose a limb.

"Yeah, I'm obviously not." He said, pulling his arm away, irritated. "I'm sure you're real disappointed about that, but-"

"I am not." Sesshomaru interrupted decisively. "But I do wish for an explanation. How is it that you are still alive?"

"I don't know why you even thought I was dead!" Inuyasha spat in frustration. "Obviously, I'm not!"

"A little less than thirty years ago, I required your aid with a small matter, but was unable to find you. Thinking nothing of it, I sought out an oracle to inquire about your state. She told me your were dead. Your kit confirmed the story."

"You found Shippo?"

"He resides at my palace." Sesshomaru waved the question away, returning relentlessly to his original point. "Now, explain how you are still alive. Or if it is even truly you." His eyes narrowed suspiciously, and suddenly he was pressing his nose into Inuyasha's neck, breathing in deeply.

Inuyasha jumped back, slapping a hand on his neck as if to shield it. "It's me!"

"Your scent is different." Sesshomaru raised a brow, but was obviously appeased by the whiff he got, because his posture relaxed slightly.

"That's-!" What? He didn't know his scent was different. He brought his hand to his nose, subtly scenting himself. He smelled normal,, but maybe...not? Could it be different? "I don't know. I don't think it's different."

"It is. Sweeter. Odd. But it is still clearly you, somehow. Now, explain, Inuyasha."

"I don't know! I think I smell the same!"

"No, you half-wit. I mean, explain why I was told you were dead when you are clearly not. I do not like being played the fool, hanyou."

"I don't-" He was getting angry, and the urge to just lash out and punch something was beginning to build. He flinched, remembering what this feeling brought. He needed to calm down. He took a deep breath.

2\. 3 . .8.9.10.

He was fine. Everything was fine. He needed to just stop being a stupid animal and act like a normal person for once.

"Look, I don't think we're communicating this very well. When the battle was over, I followed Kagome to her...country, thing. I thought you knew that."

Sesshomaru stared at him. "...I was aware. However, you residing in a different country is different than you leaving this plane entirely."

And then suddenly it clicked. He did leave this world. He didn't die, but he was in the future. It must've screwed with the Oracle's senses.

"Ooooohhhhh. Yeah okay, I get it. Kagome's not from another country, she's from ….another dimension. It's hard to explain."

"And you did not think it wise to warn me about this?"

"Um, no? We hate each other, remember? I didn't think you'd even care."

Sesshomaru's face was impassive, but his shoulders tensed a bit. "Indeed. You were correct in this assumption. I do not care. In the least. Please, by all means, return my child and go." He spun around, not even bothering to see what Inuyasha would do.

The old anger spiked again, but Kagome's voice echoed in his head. _Stupid animal._ He paused, taking a deep breath once more.

"All right. Whatever. Tatsuya? That your name, kid?" The kid had been hiding behind him this whole time, and now shot him a betrayed look.

"Shh! I wanted him to forget I was here!" He whispered at Inuyasha, who rolled his eyes.

"I was hardly about to forget the reason why I have been scouring these abominable woods for two days, instead of meeting with my generals as I should." Sesshomaru's voice was light, but it betrayed some of his frustration.

Tatsuya gulped nervously. "Sorry?" He tried.

"I'm afraid that will not be sufficient. Come, now, son, I will dole out your punishment when we get home."

"But-but I wanna stay with Inuyasha!"

Sesshomaru turned back around, finally, shooting Tatsuya an unimpressed look.

"Inuyasha has a mate to return to, I'm sure he doesn't wish to be burdened with your presence any longer."

"Uh, nah, he's fine-" Inuyasha tried to interject, but Tatsuya just talked over him.

"No way! He loves me way more than you do! I'm staying with him!"

"Tatsuya, cease this immature behavior." As if that was going to help. The comment actually seemed to get Tatsuya more angry.

"I won't! I'm not leaving Inuyasha, and that's final!" Suddenly the baby on Sesshomaru's shoulder began to cry, and the youkai looked at it with frustrated confusion.

"Stop that." He chided, as if the baby could understand him. "You shame yourself."

The baby kept crying, and now Tatsuya was grabbing Inuyasha's neck tightly, refusing to let go. Sesshomaru flew over to them to pry the child away, and the baby screamed even louder. Inuyasha finally unattached Tatsuya from his arm, and Sesshomaru grabbed the child, securing him on the hip opposite the baby. With that, Tatsuya began to wail as loudly as the baby.

"I HATE YOU!" He screamed, trying to pull away. "You're not my dad!" Tears streamed down his face, mixing with snot and making an absolute mess of Sesshomaru's sleeve.

And Sesshomaru just stood there, getting more frustrated by the second, absolutely failing to do anything useful to calm either child down.

It really wasn't Inuyasha's place to get involved. Not at all. He really should've just enjoyed watching Sesshomaru actually fail at something in his life, and then just walked away to do...something with his life.

But he'd had three children of his own. He'd _been_ there.

Plus, it was pretty much psychologically impossible to watch a baby cry and not do anything to stop it.

So he grabbed the little baby out of her pouch, and held her against his shoulder.

And -oh-she was so tiny. Memories of his youngest had him humming a lullaby under his breath and sticking a finger near her mouth for her to suck.

And he couldn't help but remember when his daughter was this small, and he'd lie on the couch, with her asleep on top of him, a tiny little weight on his chest. The baby started sucking on his finger, and his heart broke a little.

Tiny fangs bit down on the digit, drawing blood, and he blinked. The baby kept sucking happily, as if she wasn't drinking his blood like a little vampire.

Well, at least she'd stopped crying?

"She bit me?" He looked at Sesshomaru for answers, but the demon seemed just as surprised as he was. Even Tatsuya had calmed down, although the kid took advantage of his father's distraction, and wiggled from his grip and back onto Inuyasha's shoulder. Tatsuya cuddled against the hanyou's shoulder, lapping at his chin.

The baby made a content sound in the back of her throat, and Inuyasha watched her little eyes close shut, absolutely enthralled.

The tension diffused, Tatsuya turned to Sesshomaru. "Daddy, can he come stay with us?"

Sesshomaru looked at all of them, face unreadable. "...No."

"What? Why not?"

"He's...he has his own family."

Inuyasha looked up. "About that. So, I'm kind of...free right now. You know. Not...busy. I could take care of your kids, if you don't have a nanny or anything." He tried to make the offer as casual as possible. After all, it was Sesshomaru who needed him, not the other way around.

"A what?"

"A nanny. You know. Someone you pay to look after your kids when you're not around."

"Let some stranger alone with my heir? You think me stupid." Sesshomaru scoffed, obviously not understanding the idea of professional child care.

"What? No! It's a normal thing!"

"Among humans, perhaps, who seem to trust everybody they see on the street. Demons have a little more common sense."

"What common sense? Nannies make sense." Inuyasha struggled to explain. "What, do you just take your kids everywhere with you, then?"

"Usually, one's submissive mate would have the job. Otherwise, an unmarried submissive sibling."

"You don't have either of those, though." Inuyasha reasoned. "So what do you even do?"

"I bring them to my war meetings, and instruct them to stay out of trouble." Sesshomaru sniffed, and something about his tone seemed to imply that worked pretty well for him until now.

But...he thought back to the image of Sesshomaru uncomfortably dealing with the two sobbing children. Probably not.

"Well, crap. Don't do that. I can take care of them while you're off doing your thing." He offered before he could stop himself, but Sesshomaru was already shaking his head.

"You are a dominant mate, you know nothing of childcare. It would surely be a disaster."

"Well I obviously did fine just now." Inuyasha made a little gesture to the two children resting on him. "Plus, I always used to take care of the kids while Kagome worked, so it's really not-"

"What?" Sesshomaru's expression went stormy again.

"Um, yeah. Her world doesn't really have...demons. Or hanyou. So I'd stay home, while she worked. It was fine. We made it work."

"You were her submissive mate."

"Um, no? What does that even mean?" The only time he'd ever heard of dominant or submissive in relationships were in those dumb Bdsm romance novels he didn't read at all, ever.

Nope. Not him.

"You take care of the children. You cook the food. You teach the children how to be better youkai. You guide your mate in important decisions, and support them as they provide for and protect the family." Sesshomaru enunciated each point slowly and carefully, watching Inuyasha for a reaction.

"Yeah, but." So what if he did those things? They were equals! Plus, it just made sense-what else were they supposed to do? That didn't make him 'submissive' or whatever.

"You are her submissive mate."

"That's not-I'm a guy!"

"Irrelevant." And how was that irrelevant? But Sesshomaru was plowing forward before he could object. "You are the submissive mate of a human."

"I can't-I'm not-I'm not talking about this!"

"You do realize this is unacceptable, Inuyasha. It brings shame to the family name." He paused, considering something. "I will take you with me."

"Huh?"

"Indeed. There will be no more of this nonsense of you submitting to a human. I will find you a more acceptable mate, and if you little miko wishes to challenge me, she is welcome to it."

"You can't just do that! I'm not going to-"

"His mate was real bad to him!" Tatsuya suddenly piped up, the little traitor. "She cut off his hair! And his claws! And she gave him kids without his consent! And now she left him all by his lonesome and you always taught me that dominant a shouldn't treat their submissives like that cause it's just awful and if I was ever like that to my submissive I should just die cause it's so awful so please please please can Inuyasha stay with us and not with his nasty mate?"

Inuyasha felt his face turn hot with shame as all of his personal struggles and relationship issues were brought to light in front of the worst possible person. He glanced over at Sesshomaru, whose eyes were trained on his face.

He looked at the ground.

When Sesshomaru spoke, his voice was ice. "Is this true, Inuyasha?"

"Kind of. Um. It's not really as bad as he's making it out to be."

"But she did cut your hair and claws."

"...yeah."

"And she-she didn't-" Sesshomaru coughed, ending whatever train of thought held been on. "She has now abandoned you?"

"Um. We ended our relationship, yeah."

"You ran from her?"

"No! I would never-! It wasn't like that. I just-wasn't enough for her, I guess. So she just sort of...sent me back to this dimension is all. Cut me loose, or whatever you call it."

"I call it abandoning the mate you swore to protect, after disfiguring him and leaving him defenseless." Inuyasha couldn't help but flinch at the words, and Sesshomaru judged him in silence. "You will return with us to the palace."

"And what? You'll-"

"I have committed more than a few oversights on your part, brother. I will see them put to rights. Now, come." Sesshomaru turned around, walking away.

This was a bad idea. Really, Inuyasha should just drop the kids and walk away. Sesshomaru didn't care about him-would never care about him. He was just doing this out of some weird, demony sense of duty. If he went with Sesshomaru, he'd probably spend the whole time getting walked all over, or fighting with the insufferable man.

They hated each other. It didn't even begin to make sense. It was a bad idea. He should just go.

But then Tatsuya wrapped his arms around Inuyasha's neck and the tiny baby yawned against his finger, and really the choice was made for him right there.

He sighed, adjusting the baby against his chest.

He followed Sesshomaru.

OoOoOoOoO

 _Luvis Blynd: Ask and ye shall receive! (I read your comment ten minutes before adding this chapter, haha. Glad you liked it!_

 _ocean of rage: Yeah, I'm also not a fan of people that make her so uncharacteristically evil. I'm glad you liked my portrayal of her, I was worried about it. :) (And on with the gay) hahaha I laughed so hard at this! I'm glad you like Sesshomaru's kid! I think when kids have crushed on adults and try to impress them, it's really cute, so boom there's his character. (It's only creepy if Inuyasha flirts back) But yeah, you're right. I read somewhere that demon aging is somewhere like 10 years to every one of ours, so I imagine him as like five. (I guess that's just until they're adults though? Because Sess is apparently like four hundred or something, and he definitely does not look forty. Idek demon aging is weird.)_

 _Guest: Thank you! I love you!_

 _Jelly Me: Thank you! (I will forgive the late reivew if you forgive the late update? Haha seriously, though, no worries.) I'm glad you like Sesshomaru's son! His name is Tatsuya, in case you are reading this before the chapter itself. I get worried when I make OC's-I'm glad you like him. And, yes. Inuyasha will find healing in his new family. I love him to much to leave him hurt! And actually, I do plan on bringing Miroku and Sango back, but it just wasn't the time for it, narrative-wise. And I am considering coming full circle and bringing Kagome back briefly for closure (I have a really good scene in my head that involves his claws) Thank you so much for your awesome review! It made me feel so happy :)_

 _goodnub + no fan of kikyo: I am answering both of you guys together, on the subject of the claws: I'm so glad that you noticed them, because they are a really large element in the story. You hit the nail on the head with your comment, no fan of kikyo, they are more than just an arbitrary defense, they are an extremely important part of him. Basically they are a physical symbol of all the emotional and psychological scars Inuyasha has from his time with Kagome. As he heals from that, his claws will heal, too. But it will be pretty slow, he'll only have them back at the end of the story. Healing takes time, after all. But, thank you for your comments! I loved hearing what you had to say! I hope you conitnue to enjoy it :)_

 _I.I.S. Jo no entendi tudo que hablava, pero, gracias por el su comentario, e espero que gosta!_

 _shia naru: haha sorry, it was a little more than a week. You have really good english! Is it not your first language? I couldn't even tell! But yes, Sesshomaru...doesn't really take care of children, haha. He needs help so bad! Thank you for your review, I am so glad you liked it! Sesshomaru doesn't say a lot of what he feels, but we'll be getting his perspective next, so you'll be able to see more of his reaction, there. :)_

 _matchynishi: Feel bad for all of them, lol. But probably Sesshomaru most of all. That poor man. He has literally no idea what to do. I'm glad you like them. On one hand, I love writing befuddled!dad!Sessh, but on the other I have to keep asking myself if it's okay to write him like this, haha. But, yeah. The claws. Taking them off is something that is so thoughtlessly practical (they ruin the couch, watch out for the kids, etc) I can imagine totally that Kagome would do it, but it's really cruel. :'( Thank you for reviewing! I seriously love what you have to say!_


	4. Pra Voce Guardei o Amor

_Okay. Um, yeah. Sorry for taking so long. I was on a roll, all ready to write consistently every week and then the semester started and my life got so busy I kind of...forgot? To update? I'm very sorry._

 _But, yayyy! A new chapter! This one is sort of an interlude giving a bit of background on Sesshomaru. I want to make clear that my perspective of him in this is not that he's a good person. Just that he's very utilitarian, and often ruled by logic. Like, extremely lawful...neutral? Not quite evil, because he does have his honor and convictions, but often logic steers him to make the wrong choice. ESPECIALLY in the case of Inuyasha._

When Sesshomaru was one hundred and thirty years of age, his father allowed him to view a court case, to prepare him for his future role as leader of the Western Lands. The accused was a very prominent youkai who had just levelled an entire community of bird youkai.

There were not many crimes within demon society. Mostly, demons governed themselves with one overwhelming law of 'might is right.' If you were weak enough to be killed, you obviously deserved it. If someone stole something from you, it was up to you to get it back. If you weren't strong enough? Well then, that was your problem.

But genocide was one of the very few things that merited legal interference. Depending on the nature of the offence, the guilty party could be executed, or even stripped of all his titles and power.

And this youkai had been powerful. His lands and power were admired by all. He had riches, women, anything he wished for. He gave it all up, just so he could kill some measly bird youkai. Sesshomaru couldn't understand it. He knew the penalty-how could he do something so stupid?

"She left me for him," He'd explained, resigned in the face of his Lord. "And I just...I just saw red."

At the time, Sesshomaru had been utterly baffled by this statement. How could that be? How could someone be so utterly ruled by their emotions? Didn't he know that he could simply take a deep breath and think it out? How could anybody be angry enough to ruin their entire life?

Now, though. Now he understood. Too well, in fact, because it seemed that any time he was around his ridiculously barbaric hanyou brother, he forgot the very meaning of the word 'logic'.

Starting with the first time he saw the little bastard, really. Because what he had done was logical, in abandoning the boy. It was the only real option he had. Now, he could take in whatever child he wished. But back then? He was a new daiyoukai, and everyone seemed to want to challenge his rule. If he had begun rearing a child in that environment, he would have been immediately deposed. The council considered a dominant doing "submissive work" a complete embarrassment. Not to mention, he'd fended off more than one attempted assassination back then. Sometimes, he'd only barely managed to survive. He didn't know that he'd have been strong enough to protect a child in those circumstances.

He could have taken Izayoi on as his submissive, to rear and protect the child, but. . . to take on his father's greatest mistake as his mate? He would flay himself first.

But even knowing all this... even knowing it was impossible...looking into those silly wide eyes, poking at a downy ear...he had wanted to protect the child. Gods above, how he had wanted to. He wanted to just take in the child and protect it from the world.

Luckily, that time, he was able to get his wits about him and do the smart thing. He left this child with its mother, and that was that. The end. He should have never come back. It was emotion, though, that led him to return, again and again, to teach the young boy how to fight.

Of course, he tried to hide it under a facade of disgust. "I hate the hanyou so much, I will kill it...or disarm it. Well, I cannot kill a disarmed child, I suppose I will simply have to leave and kill him later." He still marvelled that no one saw through that fragile justification.

It was definitely lucky no one paid attention when he hid in the bushes on moonless nights and killed every demon that went after the boy. Because really, there was no justification for that sort of behavior. It was straight selflessness, and that sort of weakness was deadly for a young daiyoukai like himself.

He stopped the nonsensical behaviour when the hanyou began to mature. Certainly, because the boy now knew quite well how to care for himself, and no longer needed Sesshomaru's help. Not because Sesshomaru was beginning to look a little bit too long at the boy's dark lashes and fine legs to the point where he was beginning to worry about his own sanity.

He had no such feelings for Inuyasha at all. Besides which, a fine pair of legs did not make someone a worthy mate. The boy was mannerless and crude, and would never fit in at court. Besides which, he had the makings of a good dominant, and Sesshomaru was not some sort of deviant who believed in dominant/dominant relationships. That was just disgusting.

Not that he was saying Inuyasha had fine legs. He didn't.

Ahem.

The point was, Inuyasha seemed to make Sesshomaru do all sorts of illogical things. Like the incident with the Tetsusaiga.

He was just so mad that Inutaishou had legitimized Inuyasha as his son. Inuyasha. The hanyou. The very idea of him being given Inutaishou's heirloom, his much more powerful sword, while Sesshomaru was stuck with a sword as valueless as a wooden stick-it made his gut clench in fury.

The next thing he knew, he'd turned into his true form and was snarling curses and threats at the one he'd wanted to protect only a few decades earlier.

He'd gotten a hacked off limb for his efforts, which, if nothing else, was at least a constant reminder to him not to lose his temper.

Not that that stopped him. He needed only to think on Inuyasha and his stupid sword, and the anger already welled up within him. Not to mention the embarrassment that he was bested by a mere hanyou. No, he needed to prove to everyone-and himself-that he was stronger than the whiny little half-breed. So he kept returning and returning and returning to Inuyasha and their fights.

And in the process, finding himself becoming worryingly distracted by a pair of fine eyes and a challenging frown.

It was nothing. It could be nothing. Inuyasha had already presented as a dominant, and had a little pack to prove it-complete with potential mate. There was nothing to be done about it.

Besides this, Sesshomaru was surprised to realize Inuyasha truly hated him. It confused him until he realized-Inuyasha was a moron. A total, complete blinding idiot. So, for whatever reason, when Sesshomaru said "I am going to kill you," Inuyasha actually believed him, even though if Sesshomaru truly wanted the hanyou dead, he could have done it long ago.

Moron.

Well, it wasn't like he wanted anything with the hanyou, anyways. Inuyasha was a dominant, and so was he. He didn't ever fantasize about what it would be like if Inuyasha was submissive, and his for the taking. That would be...pathetic, certainly. Illogical.

And if he wanted to vaguely murder Inuyasha's little girlfriend, it was mostly because he found her voice exceptionally grating. Not because of any ridiculous emotion like jealousy, of all things. He would never be jealous of a human.

So, he distanced himself once more. Not because he was pining. But because Inuyasha was clearly capable of defending himself, and Sesshomaru had more important matters to attend to than watching over an ungrateful hanyou and his irritating little friends.

When Inuyasha announced he was going to get married, well...that was wonderful. Sesshomaru truly supported him in his decision. It was a joyous occasion. He'd long since abandoned any desire for the Tetsusaiga, and he was mature enough to wish Inuyasha happiness. It just...

Obviously, he would be a little irritated that his brother took a human mate. Hanyous were mostly abominable creatures, true, but they weren't so bad when mated to a demon. They lived longer, for one, smelled better, generally acted more acceptably. When mated to humans, though, they were insufferable. Their awful smell seemed to increase tenfold-it was difficult to be within ten feet without killing the horrid things.

Not to mention, it was such a waste that he was mating such a whiny, annoying human. She simply wasn't...right for him. He imagined Inuyasha would be better with a demon mate, first of all. Someone who could help him in battle, rather than simply hiding behind him. Someone who could care for him. Someone calm, reserved, who could offset Inuyasha's loud and brash personality. Someone who didn't faint at the sight of blood, who wouldn't foolishly steer his brother towards ridiculous notions like 'compassion' and 'mercy.'

He was sure he could easily find such a demon, if Inuyasha would only forget that self-important guttersnipe. It wasn't as if Inuyasha didn't have a number of qualities that would attract a mate. He was...well, he was certainly beautiful, there was no one who could deny that. Dark lashes, arched brows, a cute nose...chubby cheeks, youthful beauty, large eyes, thick lips...his face was a work of art. His body was fine, as well. His legs were well muscled and shapely, an he had a slim waist and a decently toned torso.

Not to mention, his spirit was admirable. Sure, he could be annoying occasionally-often-but he had a courage not often seen in anyone, demons and humans alike. He was protective. Honorable. Fiery. Surely some demon would find those traits desirable.

But no, Inuyasha was, for whatever reason, stupidly happy with the wench. So, who was Sesshomaru to interfere? He wouldn't. He would stay far away, and allow Inuyasha his hard earned domestic bliss.

The North provoked him to war, anyhow, and he needed to focus his time there. He was a busy man. He lost himself in the war effort, and when he looked up, five years had passed.

"You know who would enjoy a fight like this?" Sesshomaru suppressed a tired sigh. Enlisting the help of the wolf prince Kouga had been an act of tactical genius. The wolf excelled in combat, and had the loyalty of more than a few wolf youkai. Gaining his aid increased Sesshomaru's armies tenfold.

But the complete moron insisted on talking constantly. Even in battle, which Sesshomaru always considered to be a solidly silent activity, Koga insisted on starting small talk. Sesshomaru hated small talk.

And now he was speaking again. Did he never shut up?

"No, I'm afraid I do not." Sesshomaru answered, because Koga was waiting for an answer.

Koga smiled, face going nostalgic. "Inuyasha. Man, that guy knew his way around a fight. Fight like this? Hundreds of enemies? Inuyasha would be all over it." As if he had ever been Inuyasha's friend. Sesshomaru knew as well as anyone that they fought like cats and dogs. Now that Inuyasha is gone, he wanted to act like they were best friends? No thank you.

"Unfortunately, he had other matters to attend to." Sesshomaru intoned, dispatching two more enemies. "Principally, pleasing his submissive mate."

It was a low blow, but it succeeded in shutting Koga up, and that was all he wished to do.

After a few days, however, he found his mind circling distractedly on the idea of bringing Inuyasha to battle. Indeed, the hanyou always got excited by battle. Sesshomaru found his mind especially liked focusing on the image of Inuyasha in the middle of battle.

Inuyasha's cheeks always seemed to flush a pretty shade of pink in the heat of battle, and his eyes sparked brightly with something akin to happiness. His breathing deepened with exhaustion, and his hair became a tangled mess that Sesshomaru couldn't decide if he wanted to untangle, or just make a hundred times worse. The image left him unsettled. So unsettled he found himself having to resort to pleasuring himself to calm himself down before bed.

Before he knew it, he was searching the hanyou out. He'd said he would follow the miko to her homeland, but...where was that, again? Did they say? No matter where he went, he couldn't even find a trace of Inuyasha's scent, and it was more than a little frustrating.

Eventually, he just went to an oracle.

"You come asking me to find a dead man." The oracle said, and it happened. Sesshomaru saw red.

Sometimes, he counted himself lucky he had a sword that could revive. He re-assembled the parts of the oracle with some difficulty, and revived her. She gasped out a shuddering breath, scrambling backwards.

"I'm sorry, my Lord! I was impertinent!"

"This Sesshomaru did not find your jest amusing." He intoned, fixing her with a bored glare. "Now, tell me where he is, truly."

"He...he is indeed dead, my Lord. I...I'm sorry. His soul no longer resides on this plane." The oracle prostrated herself on the ground, the picture of pathetic submission.

That was unacceptable. Inuyasha could not be dead. No, no. Sesshomaru would not accept this at all. He would have to reverse this. He would simply find the body and revive him. It was fine. Hopefully, then, the little miko would be dead and Sesshomaru would be free to find Inuyasha a better mate.

"Find his body, then, oracle." He ordered, waiting patiently as she arranged the necessary spell ingredients. Her face faltered into worry at the first incantation, and then downright panic at the second. By the third, tears had begun to leak from her eyes.

"I...I cannot, my Lord. It is..hidden, from my vision." She choked out between weak tears. "I am so sorry, my Lord, I have failed you. Please, please do not kill me-I have a family, a son-"

Sesshomaru snorted. "I will not be killing you today." He answered simply. Obviously the oracle wouldn't be able to see it, likely that old miko from the human village was working her magic. He made his way to the tiny village to seek out Inuyasha's burial place.

It was nowhere to be found. The miko was dead.

"I'm sorry, Sesshomaru, Inuyasha hasn't come back since moving away with Kagome. We don't know where he would be buried," Inuyasha's pet monk answered, voice light, even as his face was shadowed in sorrow. The slayer looked equally as grim. "You're...you're sure he's dead, though? Maybe the oracle could be wrong."

"Oracles do not err on such accounts." Sesshomaru answered bitterly. "Where is this country from which Kagome hails?"

"I...to speak the truth, I do not know." Tears pricked at the monk's eyes. "We could...nobody ever went there except for them."

"Do not lie to me, monk." Sesshomaru snarled. "If you wish to see your friends alive again, you will tell me."

The monk had no answers for him, and Sesshomaru fled back to battle. Legends were told of his bloodlust this day. He killed an entire demon army with his bare hands, and ended the war with the North.

It wasn't enough. He was still so angry. So very-very-chaotic emotion threatenned to burst to the surface- _he's dead, He's DEAD how could you let this happen, I hate myself I HATE_ -and he strangled Jaken, throwing him with all his force into the wall.

It wasn't enough. He needed to kill. He needed to forget. He turned his eyes to the South, and opened war with a fury. He fought and killed and terrorized everything in his path. He had been doing so for a decade when he met the little fox cub Inuyasha had taken care of. The poor cub had been living with humans all this time, and had finally left. He was useless in a fight, and had no idea what to do with himself in a battle.

He took in the child, promising to teach him how to fight. The child agreed, and it was mostly good. The child feared him enough to avoid him most days, only meeting him for training. He trained the boy for a an hour or two, then, stopping when the boy began to cry.

It worked, and even better, it gave him a purpose besides killing and trying to forget his brother's death.

It was in the third decade, though, that everything went to hell. He was in the middle of a war with China when an old concubine of his arrived at his doorstep, bloodied and beaten, with a child at her feet and a baby in her arms.

"My Lord, forgive this servant. I selfishly carried your child, and now I know I will die soon. I only ask that you find a home for my offspring. Please, Lord, show them your mercy."

It was not his policy to show mercy. Not in the least. But when he looked at the woman, he could only see Izayoi, and when he looked at the baby, he could only see Inuyasha, innocent and pure, unknowing of the horrors that awaited him.

If only...If only he had taken in the boy, all those years ago, he might...

Sesshomaru took the children in.

_-0-_-0-_-0-_

It was an absolute disaster. Sesshomaru was beyond unequipped for child-rearing. The baby was especially vexing. It ate and pooped and slept, and when it wasn't doing that, it screamed and cried loudly. He had no idea what to do with it, and it required constant supervision. It was awful. Beyond that, he had employed a submissive youkai to nurse the child, but he'd seen him give more than one sneaky look at the child, and Sesshomaru worried he might try to kill the thing soon.

The older child wasn't quite as vexing, but he wasn't easy, either. He had picked up some bad habits from his mother, and always seemed to be chasing the submissive youkai around the palace. He was headstrong and lazy, too, and was always getting into fights with Shippo.

Shippo, who had never given him problems before seemed to live terrorizing the other child, playing pranks and fighting, and crying when things didn't go his way. It was extremely annoying, and everybody looked to Sesshomaru to put a stop to it. After all, it was his household. His responsibility.

He couldn't seem to do anything. He separated Shippo and the second child, and spent his days trying to keep the baby from screaming (albeit unsuccessfully). His counselors and servants all not-so subtly tried to seek out a submissive mate for him, and he couldn't even blame them because he knew he needed one. He was not cut out for submissive work; not by half.

And then the second child ran away, and that was it. He could not deal with this. He was at the end of his rope. He'd have to either find a submissive mate or kill these children, because he couldn't continue one more day of this.

When he finally caught a whiff of his son's scent, he didn't know if he wanted to embrace or murder the child. How dare he run away and make Sesshomaru worry so much? How dare he leave when Sesshomaru was so generous as to take him in in the first place?

There was the sweet scent of a hanyou with him, and he grit his teeth, trying not to associate the scent with Inuyasha. Inuyasha was dead, thirty years now, and there was no use thinking about him. It would only bring pain.

He burst into the clearing, ready to give the child the lecture of his life, when he stopped short. Inuyasha stood there, holding his son in his arms.

Inuyasha.

Inuyasha was alive.

And Sesshomaru was never going to allow him out of his protection again.

* * *

00000

 _Okay, thanks for reading, guys! I will try to answer reviews individually from now on!_

 _Actually, looking back on the reviews, I'm kinda hazy on who I responded to and who I didn't. So if you didn't get a response to a review this chapter, it's not because I didn't love your review, it's just because I'm lame._

 _A lot of people asked if we would see Inuyasha's kids later in the story. Yes, we will! They will not overpower the story or anything, but yes they will make an appearance (warning, they will probably bask Kagome a lot when we see them, ha)_

 _Thank you everyone!_


	5. Eu, Voce, Dois Filhos e Um Cachorro

_I'm back! A quicker update, to make up for how long you guys waited for the last one. I hope you like it!_

 _o_O_o_OO_o_o_ooo__

"Inuyasha." Inuyasha jumped as Sesshomaru appeared suddenly behind him.

"Crap! What-don't sneak up on me like that!" Inuyasha punched Sesshomaru in the arm, irritated.

"It is not my fault you are not as alert as you once were." Sesshomaru snorted, looking over his shoulder at the closed door. "How fare the children?"

"They're asleep. Ta-chan was a little menace, though. He got all excited and then convinced himself he couldn't sleep. I had to rock him for like a half hour in order to calm him down, and I'm still not sure he's not faking sleep in there."

By the time they'd gotten back to Sesshomaru's castle, it had already bee night, and apparently past the children's bedtime. Tatsuya didn't seem to agree, though. He'd spent the past hour trying to do everything in his power to stay up more with his new babysitter. Inuyasha finally convinced him to sleep by saying that if he didn't sleep soon, Inuyasha wouldn't play any fun games with him the next day. Tatsuya had become eerily quiet almost immediately.

Sesshomaru, in the meantime, had been gone, presumably doing demon ruling business, but it was just as likely he'd been chilling and doing nothing, waiting for Inuyasha to deal with the kids before he appeared again.

"You are surprisingly good with him." Sesshomaru nodded in the direction of the room.

"Yeah, well, three kids, so…" Inuyasha shrugged, embarrassed at the rare praise coming from his brother. Sesshomaru was awkward at this whole talking thing. It was obvious that his brother had gotten over the whole 'filthy hanyou, I hate you' attitude, but it wasn't like talking to Sesshomaru was normal, by any stretch of the imagination.

He was trying, though, so Inuyasha guess that counted for something.

"Ah yes. The children you had with Kagome...is it...is it true that she...didn't acquire your consent?" Like that. Awkward.

"You're asking if she raped me? No, she didn't. It was kind of the opposite problem, actually."

"You raped her?"

"What? No! I would never! No, it was nothing like that. She just-she just got older, okay? And she thought I was too young for her, so she didn't really want to anymore. I told her it was okay, but she really didn't want to." He didn't really want to be talking about any of this with Sesshomaru of all people, but he wasn't about to keep it a secret. It wasn't really his style.

"Why did she get old?" Sesshomaru asked, as if it wasn't the most obvious thing in the world.

"Um, she's human. They kind of do that."

"You...you did not mate her, then?" Sesshomaru asked, genuinely confused. "Humans with demon mates adopt their lifespan."

"Yeah, no. I'm a hanyou...just like humans can't make a mating mark, I can't, either." Inuyasha looked at the floor, embarrassed.

"Ah. I see." Sesshomaru actually looked flustered, which was weird, because he didn't really have any reason to. He coughed awkwardly. "So, I am to assume these children came from before she got older, then?"

"Uh, kind of, I guess. They were adopted, though."

Sesshomaru looked up sharply at that. "You raised children that were not your own? Why?"

"Well, Kagome didn't really want to deal with having freaks for kids, so when we wanted children, we...outsourced it. Well, Chiyo is Kagome's with another man, and so is Kazumi. But the oldest was adopted."

"That...she was unfaithful to you, and yet you raised her children."

"Yeah, I mean, we weren't having sex at that point anyways, so...I mean, she had to get her urges out somehow, right?"

"You were adultering as well, then."

"No! I wouldn't do that to her. Besides, I never even left the house, so where was I going to find someone?"

"She locked you up in the house." This was getting worse and worse. It wasn't nearly as bad as Sesshomaru was obviously assuming it was, but Inuyasha's explanations just seemed to be making it worse.

"Not locked up! Seriously, you're making a big deal out of things. I couldn't really go out because humans freak out when they see hanyou like me, so…"

Sesshomaru growled low in his throat, and Inuyasha noticed suddenly that his hand was leaking poison. He backed up a step, just to be careful, and Sesshomaru blinked, coming back to himself.

"It was good that you left her," His voice was a scratchy growl, which meant he was trying hard to control himself. Weird. What got him so upset? "She did not deserve you."

Um, what?

"Um, what?" Inuyasha asked, baffled. "Whatever happened to the whole 'dirty hanyou, beneath the dust of the earth' crap?"

"It is true that you are a hanyou. It is true that you are uncultured, simple, and weak. But you are not without your good points. You could easily find a dominant twice as good as her, who could actually mate you properly. But regardless of that, few creatures deserve to be treated in such a way. I am glad you are far from her, where she can no longer hurt you."

It was probably more that Sesshomaru had ever spoken to him in his life. Suddenly Inuyasha was struck with the absolute unlikeliness of this situation. "Are you really Sesshomaru?" He asked, confused.

"Of course." Sesshomaru scoffed, and Inuyasha put his hand to his head without thinking.

"Hm, you're kind of warm, but not feverish. Do you feel okay? Did you eat something weird?"

"I am not sick." Sesshomaru batted his hand away. "I do not get sick."

"Yeah, okay." Inuyasha shrugged. Weird. Sesshomaru obviously changed way more than he'd thought in the past thirty years. He couldn't really deal with it, though, so he changed the subject. "Anyways, I was wondering, where should I sleep? I mean, I can technically sleep on a tree branch or something, but I would actually prefer a bed, so do you think there's an extra one for me somewhere?"

"You are being ridiculous again, hanyou. Of course you will sleep with the children." Inuyasha blinked at that. With the children?

"What? I mean, Ta-chan's bed is pretty big, sure, but shouldn't kids his age be learning how to sleep on their own by now?"

"You would leave them open to attack, then? Or are you foolish enough to think you could wake and fend off the attacker fast enough, should you sleep in the room adjacent?"

"No, but…"

"Cease this foolishness. Come, hanyou." Sesshomaru was already opening the door to the room. Inuyasha moved to the large bed, expecting Sesshomaru to leave. Instead, he looked at the little crib off to the side of the room. "What is that?"

"Uh, a crib? A place for the baby to sleep?"

"Unacceptable. It will sleep with you, of course."

"What?! No way! I could crush her in my sleep! Put her back!" Inuyasha hissed as Sesshomaru pushed the baby into his arms.

"Don't be foolish. She is a demon. Demon children cannot be killed so easily." Sesshomaru rolled his eyes, taking in the sight. Inuyasha lay there, the baby cradled under his chin. Tatsuya had immediately snuggled into his stomach as soon as he'd laid down, making him think the kid was only faking sleep. Whatever. This wasn't so bad. Better than sleeping alone, actually.

Sesshomaru stood at the window, looking out it like a weirdo. He then moved to the door, leaving, presumably to sleep wherever the hell he slept. But, no, less than a minute later, he was walking back into the room, closing the door carefully behind him.

"What?" Inuyasha asked, voice barely above a whisper. Sesshomaru just walked closer to the bed, and….actually….got in? He just got in the bed behind Inuyasha? And just snuggled in? He was spooning Inuyasha? He wrapped an arm around Inuyasha's middle, catching Tatsuya's hair between his fingers?

"What are you doing?!" Inuyasha hissed, trying to wiggle away. Both Tatsuya and the baby snuggled into him more, whining in complaint. Sesshomaru, for his part, growled, arm tensing and pulling Inuyasha back against his chest.

"What does it look like I'm doing?"

"Going crazy?! I don't know!"

"Of course I will sleep with my family, what else did you expect?" Sesshomaru growled, leaning up on an arm so he could look Inuyasha in the eyes.

Inuyasha just blinked up at him, shocked. He couldn't think of a single thing to say to that.

Sesshomaru flopped back down on the bed, wrapping his arm around Inuyasha once more. "I wonder if you could stop being an idiot for three full minutes." He scoffed into the back of Inuyasha's neck.

Inuyasha didn't respond, only lay there in surprise.

_. _ -.- _. _ .-_- _ _-

The baby woke him up with its tears in the middle of the night. He blearily shoved at Sesshomaru, who was draped over him like a sack of potatoes. "Hey. Hey."

"Nooo…" Sesshomaru moaned, rolling away.

"Sesshomaru-Sesshomaru, wake up."

"Don' wanna. It always does this….jus'...just kill it or something" The youkai lord complained, and man was it weird seeing him like this. The usually stoic demon lord was completely useless and grumpy when he was tired.

"Okay, well I think she's hungry, so what do I do?" Inuyasha whispered. Sesshomaru sat up, rubbing at his face tiredly. He rolled out of bed languidly, grace coming back into his movements. He came back in a few minutes, when Inuyasha had more or less calmed the baby down by letting her suck the blood from his finger.

Sesshomaru looked down at him, irritated. "Stop that," He scolded. "Too much blood isn't good for babies."

"Well, I don't know! I didn't know any blood was good for babies!"

"Please. It's normal to treat babies to a little bit of blood. Just not too much, otherwise it's bad for their stomach."

"Demon babies, maybe." Inuyasha muttered crossly, but Sesshomaru was already handing him a deep cup of something that smelled strongly of herbs. "You want me to give this to her?"

"No, you drink that. I'll find her wet nurse." Sesshomaru grabbed the baby from his hands. Inuyasha watched them leave, befuddled.

"Why did he give me this, though?" He asked nobody, drinking down the mixture anyways. It didn't taste good, but it wasn't too bad either, like a bitter tea. When it was gone, he set the cup down on the floor, and went back to sleep.

He woke up when Sesshomaru came back into the room, and realized his chest was tingling almost painfully. "Oh, thanks." He mumbled as Sesshomaru handed him the baby and laid back down.

"Hey," Inuyasha poked the daiyoukai. "What was with that tea? Why'd you give it to me?"

"Stagwort tea." Sesshomaru mumbled. "Now, let me sleep."

Inuyasha left him alone, even though his question wasn't really answered at all. His chest itched and tingled all night long.

_-_,_,_-_._-_

When he woke up again, it was morning. Tatsuya giggled at his ear, poking his face. On his other side, Sesshomaru held the baby, pressing another cup of herbal tea to his face. "Wake up, Inuyasha and drink your tea so I can get this baby fed."

Inuyasha sat up, taking the tea obediently. "Seriously, what is this tea, though? It made my chest itchy all night long."

"I'm glad to hear that it's working. Worry not, the discomfort will pass, and there is only one more cup necessary before you may stop."

"But why do I need to drink it at all?!" Inuyasha complained, but Sesshomaru was already leaving.

"I will return shortly with this one. My day should be full of war meetings today, so do not expect to see me until dinnertime. Shippo will be getting in by this afternoon. I trust he will be excited to see you."

"Shippo?! Shippo's here?" Inuyasha jumped up excitedly.

"Not now. He is on a training journey with Kouga, but he should return by later today."

"But he's here. That's awesome! Does he live here, or is he just visiting?"

"He resides here." The baby fussed then, and Sesshomaru hurried to leave. "I will be back to answer your questions shortly."

With him gone, Inuyasha drank the nasty tea, now excited to see Shippo. He wondered how the kit had changed. Would he be much older than he had been? He looked back at Tatsuya, who was rolling around on the bed, excited.

"Kid, what's up with you? You look like you got ants in your pants or something."

Tatsuya giggled at that. "I'm just so excited! You're here, and we get to play together all day long! It'll be so fun!"

"Hey. It's not all gonna be fun and games, you know." Inuyasha mock scowled, and Tatsuya paused in his merriment.

"Whaaaat?" He whined, rolling by away from Inuyasha.

"Oh yeah." Inuyasha nodded. "We need some time to eat, too. And have story time...and take a nap-"

"A nap!" Tatsuya groaned. Inuyasha blinked.

"What's wrong with a nap? Naps are fun! I take naps."

"No, you're just saying that so I'll take one. Everybody knows naps are for babies."

Inuyasha laughed. "Well, that's where you're wrong. Actually, only babies and little kids ever complain about taking naps. Grown ups always look forward to it."

Tatsuya squinted up at him suspiciously, looking just like a mini Sesshomaru, and Inuyasha couldn't help it. He took out his phone and snapped a picture.

"Huh? What is that? What did you just do?" Tatsuya pounced on him, grabbing for the phone.

"Ouch! Hey, calm down, I just took a picture of you, is all. Look." He tapped on the picture and Tatsuya let out an excited squeal. "That's me!"

"Yeah." Inuyasha looked fondly at the boy. He did need to conserve his battery until he found a good way to charge his phone, but...for now… "You wanna take one with me?"

And just like that, they spent the next thirty minutes taking selfies, with Tatsuya snuggled firmly against Inuyasha's side.

When Sesshomaru came back in, Tatsuya jumped up, grabbing the phone from Inuyasha. "Daddy, Daddy, look!"

Inuyasha got up and took the baby, letting Tatsuya have some time with his father. He made a show of looking for clothes for her, in the meantime sneaking glances at Sesshomaru out of the corner of his eye.

Sesshomaru was as stoic as ever with the boy, but he listened patiently as Tatsuya showed him every picture and told him the story behind every one. "And then, this one we were doing mean faces, but this next one, M-Inuyasha was tickling me. That was pretty mean, and the picture's all blurry too."

Sesshomaru listened regally, finally cutting in, "but how do I get a larger painting like these?"

"You actually want one?" Inuyasha asked from where he was changing the baby's diaper.

"Of course. Such detailed portraits should be cherished and hung on the walls of the palace." Sesshomaru answered matter-of-factly.

Inuyasha laughed lightly. "Nah, they've gotta stay on the phone, and they're not paintings, they're just photographs. It's like a little magic mirror, sort of."

He picked up the now clean baby and padded over to the two. He turned the camera feature back on the phone and held it out far enough that it captured everybody. He took a few pictures, then handed them back to Sesshomaru, who looked at the device in something a little too close to awe.

"I will get the palace painter to copy these." He announced, standing and walking out. "And I will see you at supper time."

"Um, okay, yeah sure." Inuyasha said distractedly, before he realized Sesshomaru had just taken his phone, and his expression soured. "Okay, Just steal my phone. I don't care. Not like I was using it or anything." Inuyasha complained sarcastically.

Tatsuya beamed up at him.

"Okay, kiddo, let's get you dressed and do something to your hair. It looks ridiculous."

Inuyasha's own hair was growing in slowly. Right now, only about half a week after his last haircut, it came down to chin length. In another week, it would be past his shoulders.

He brushed it quickly, then turned his attention to that rat's nest that was Tatsuya's. "What did you even do last night? How can it be this messy?" He wondered aloud, and Tatsuya giggled.

The baby made a loud sound from where she lay in a sling across Inuyasha's chest. "Hey, quiet, you! Don't encourage him!"

Tatsuya erupted in giggles. "Jeez, someone's hyped up. No more sugar for you, young man." Before Tatsuya could complain about the joke, Inuyasha changed the subject. "Hey, Ta-chan? What's your sister's name? I've just been calling her 'the baby' and that's kind of rude."

"Oh, she doesn't got one. She was real real little when my ma died and Daddy didn't give her one."

"Oh." Well, that was...depressing. Didn't even care enough to give her a name. "Well, if he hasn't named her by now, he loses his chance. What do you want to name her, Ta-chan?"

Tatsuya gaped at him. "You mean I can really name her?! That's so cool! I'm naming her Firebird the Destroyer!"

"Um, no. Vetoed."

"What?!"

"You have naming rights, but I have veto power. That means if you have an idea, I can say no. But if you really, really want that name you can ask your father, and he'll have the final say." It was something Inuyasha always did with Kagome, to make sure she still got some say in what was happening with their kids.

"Dang it. He'd never say yeah to Firebird." Tatsuya pouted.

"Then maybe you should think of something he would approve of."

"Kouganemura."

"Ugh. No."

"Imouto the Challenger."

"I'm not naming her 'little sister.' That's dumb." Inuyasha answered promptly. Tatsuya fielded names all through breakfast, and Inuyasha laughed at a lot of the more ridiculous ones.

"The Great Bambino! Haraturaraka! Yumikikikiki. Yukikukiko!"

"Approved!" Inuyasha interrupted suddenly, and Tatsuya blinked.

"Wait, which one?"

"Yukiko." Inuyasha edited the original name only slightly. With any luck, Tatsuya wouldn't even realize it had been changed.

"Wait, what? No! That's so lame!"

"Well, too late. I already approved it. No going back now."

"No fair!"

"Yes fair. Besides, Yukiko likes that name. Don't you, baby?" Yukiko slobbered on his finger, smiling up at him wordlessly. "See? She loves it."

"She does not." Tatsuya pouted.

"She does. She loves the name her big brother gave her. Look."

Tatsuya shyly looked at the baby. "Is that right, baby? You really like it?" He poked her cheek gently and she twisted to coo at him.

A determined look crossed his features and he nodded solemnly "Okay. Yeah. That's fine. Yukiko's a pretty cool name, anyways."

"Good. I'm glad you like it." Inuyasha approved. He took a swig of juice from his cup.

"Can I call you mama?" Tatsuya asked, and Inuyasha sprayed his juice everywhere.

"W-what?!"

"Cause, you know. Our mama's dead. And since you and Daddy are gonna mate now and take care of us and love us forever, I was thinking you could be my new mama."

"Oh, Tatsuya." Inuyasha softened, stroking the child's hair. "Sorry, but I'm not going to mate with Sesshomaru. I'm just taking care of you guys until he finds a real mate."

"What? No way! I don't want you to go!"

"Well I'm not leaving anytime soon. It'll probably take him a few decades to find a mate, at the rate he's going. But, no I'm...I'm not going to be your mom. Not to mention there's the whole problem of me being a guy, so-"

"So, what? You're a submissive. The dominant youkai is the Daddy, the submissive is the Mommy. Everybody knows that." Tatsuya answered like it was the most normal thing in the world.

"Okay, number one, I'm not submissive. Number two, even if I was, nobody's calling me Mommy, that gives me the heebie jeebies."

Tatsuya sighed. "Okay, Inuyasha." He got a stubborn look on his face, though, and Inuyasha didn't think this was the end of this discussion.

-._-._-_-._-_-

"INUYASHA!" Shippo jumped into his arms, laughing and crying at the same time. "I'm so so so happy you're alive!"

They were finally back from whatever trip they'd been on, and Shippo jumped him as soon as he'd arrived. Kouga stayed in the background a bit, allowing them to have their moment.

"You thought I was dead, too, then?" He pulled away a bit, taking in how Shippo had changed. Refreshingly, it wasn't that much. Before, he'd looked maybe five years old, now he looked eight. He was taller, and his voice only slightly lower, his mannerisms just a little bit less childish, but he was still basically the same. Looking at him, Inuyasha didn't feel like he had been gone for so long.

"Everybody did! You never came back after you left with Kagome, not even to visit."

"After the quest was all done, the well wasn't going to work all the time like before. Kagome said we only had one trip left, and we wanted to use it wisely."

"Oh. That makes sense. Wait, where's Kagome? Is she here?! I wanna see her!"

"Uh, she's...she's still back in her time. She kind of got sick of me." Inuyasha tried to play it off as a joke, but it fell flat even to his own ears.

"Oh, well, I guess that's okay. Is she coming soon? You really should stop getting her mad, she's really nice. You don't want her to really leave you."

Inuyasha coughed. "Y-yeah. I'll keep that in mind." He couldn't force himself to tell the truth; that that was exactly what had happened. He'd been immature and dumb, and Kagome had left him because of it.

"Well, anyways, even if it's just 'cause you and Kagome got in a fight, I'm glad you're here. I really missed you!"

"What, so you didn't replace me with Sesshomaru, then?"

"No way! He's the worst! And even worse now that Tatsuya and the baby are here. Like he was just scary and evil and always gone before, but now he's scary and evil and always here, and he gets mad at me a lot."

"That's cause you pick on me!" Tatsuya cried in complaint.

"Not true! I just _joke_ with you. You just can't take a joke."

"Shippo, no! No picking on those that are littler than you."

"Can I pick on you, then?"

"No! No picking on anyone. If you're laughing and someone else's upset, then it's not a funny joke, it's just bullying." Inuyasha explained it simply, so Shippo would definitely understand.

"Ohhhh kayyyyy, whatever." Shippo sighed, obviously not agreeing. "Come on, Tatsu, let's play!"

Kouga, who had been standing off to the side until then, walked up to Inuyasha.

"Shoulda known a mutt like you wouldn't die so easily." Kouga's voice was fond, despite the ribbing.

"Hey. That's bullying. You're bullying me. Not cool." Inuyasha joked, and Kouga scrambled a hand in his hair, messing it up. Inuyasha laughed.

Kouga's face was serious when he pulled away. "So, it really didn't work out, huh? You're not going back."

"No, she...It wasn't really...it kinda sucks. Three kids and thirty years later, she decides she wants someone else. What the hell, am I right?" He looked away, hiding his face. Kouga nodded.

"Bitches, man." Kouga slapped him on the back. "It'll be okay, though. Give you a chance to find someone else. I mean, _someone's_ gotta have some sort of ugly dog fetish."

"Well, someone mated you, didn't they?" Inuyasha grinned. "That's gotta be one saintly lady."

Kouga smiled fondly. "She is." His entire face softened lovingly, and Inuyasha tried his best not to be jealous.

They spoke for a little about Kouga's life. He'd mated only a few years ago, to another wolf demon from the Northern clan. The girl, Ayame, had been thrilled about the mating, but Kouga had been much less so. He mostly married her for political purposes, in order to inherit the wolf tribes to the North. Since then, though they'd quickly fallen in love; that much was obvious. Inuyasha wasn't that surprised about it, though. Kouga seemed like the type to fall in love quickly.

"You...you look different." Kouga commented. "Who did this to you?"

"What do you mean?" Inuyasha tried for nonchalance, covertly hiding his hands in the sleeves of his haori.

"Well, I'm going to assume you didn't cut your hair out of your own free will." Kouga rolled his eyes. "What, you get captured or something? After you got back?"

"Nothing like that," Inuyasha waved a hand in denial, before remembering himself and hiding it again. "Kagome just thought it would look better, so-"

"She-she _cut your hair?!_ " Kouga finished, horrified.

"Yeah, it's...it's not really a big deal to humans…"

"Yeah, but to demons it's their pride and joy! She should've known that. I can't believe she even-I've only ever seen one other person where their mate cut their hair, and that shit was downright abusive."

"...yeah."

"But that was a submissive getting his hair cut by the dominant, who was a big pile of horse shit. I've never seen a dominant-"

"About that, humans don't really have separations like that." Why were youkai so preoccupied with this?

"The hell they don't. They might call it husband and wife, not dominant and submissive, but it's the same basic thing."

"Whatever." Inuyasha really didn't feel like arguing that right now. Kouga plowed on, though, looking confused.

"Okay, so, what, now you're with Sesshomaru? Two dominants trying to raise a pack?"

"No. Well, yeah, kinda. I'm just helping him out until he finds a mate."

"Psh. Good luck with that. That bastard's never gonna find a mate, not even close." Kouga snorted. "Not that he ain't a catch for a submissive, but the bastard's picky as hell. Looks like you'll be stuck takin' care of the kids and crap forever, dog shit. Good luck."

Kouga probably was thinking he would dread that or something, but instead, looking at Tatsuya playing with Shippo, and Yukiko sleeping peacefully in her basket, Inuyasha felt hope rising in him.

He hoped Sesshomaru never found a mate. Because as long as he didn't, Inuyasha had a place where he could belong.

_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o

 _Note: Sesshomaru has not actually really slept since the baby has arrived, so that is part of the reason why he's so tired and out of it. Usually he's a lot more alert._

 _Thank you guys so much for your reviews, and for your patience with me!_

 _Luvis Blynd: Oh man, I'm sorry I kept you waiting! I'm glad you liked the chapter and Sesshomaru's POV_

 _matchynishi: Thanks! Haha, yes, In-denial-Sesshomaru is my favorite Sesshomaru! I'm happy you like him!_

 _yaoiluver: Thanks! I'm so glad you like my Sesshomaru. Yeah, I think he's so funny because he's both stoic and smart, but that doesn't necessarily mean that he's right. Thank you for your review, I loved hearing what you thought of the chapter!_

 _guest: perdón. gracias por continuar leyendo_

 _shia naru: Yes, that silly, sad little youkai. Hope you liked the update!_

 _yami no megami: Thanks! I'm very happy that you consider this GOOD Inuyasha fanfiction! I agree, though, I wish there were more good ones out there. Thanks for continuing to read mine! I hope you liked this chapter :)_

 _Guest: hahaha yeah Sesshomaru has no concept of what it's like to raise a kid. He's so hopeless :P. Glad you're enjoying it! Thanks for reviewing!_

 _jennifer: You have a very interesting username! Thank you for commenting! I hope you like the update! (Also, as to your reviews on my story "The Mistake" I have been slowly editing and reworking that story over the past few days, and I will say that I will definitely update [and hopefully finish] that story, but it will probably take a little while. But don't worry, I haven't completely forgotten it!)_


	6. Mentirosa

_Another quick update! Just a warning, it might be more than a week before the next update-I'm going on a cruise on Sunday. :) :) :) I'm so excited!_

 _hope you guys like it! I will respond to comments later today, when I have a little bit more time!_

 _—oooooooo—_

"My Lord, I must say I am so thrilled you finally found a mate to call your own!" One of his councillors spoke up at the start of the meeting. Many more nodded their assent, offering congratulations of their own.

"I have done no such thing." Sesshomaru answered evenly. "The submissive I found to care for my children is my younger hanyou brother. Do not presume to make such assumptions about me."

The councilor bowed low to the ground. "Many apologies master! I did not know. I thought your hanyou brother was dead!"

Sesshomaru allowed himself the feeling of deep satisfaction at that. The very corners of his lips twitched into the shadow of a smile. "I, too, was surprised to find him alive, after so long."

The councillor's head shot up at that. "My lord! He has returned?"

"Indeed."

The daiyoukai of the South, a Phoenix demon of some skill smirked at that. He frowned. This daiyoukai often felt that she had the right to treat him as an equal, which was frankly ridiculous. That he, the daiyoukai of the entire island of Japan should be considered an equal with the leader of the smallest islands south, a demon who could probably be defeated by even Inuyasha, was beyond insulting. Still, he often used her bird demon brothers to gather intelligence on the enemy forces in China, so he allowed her insolence to a certain extent.

Still, he was not about to allow her to mock him so openly.

"Is there anything you wish to say, my lady Tsubasa?" He raised a brow at her.

She merely smiled back, unafraid. "Come now, my lord. We all know how devastated you were at learning of your brother's death...it was surely far more than is ordinary."

Sesshomaru schooled his expression, to keep from showing his embarrassment. "It is not weakness to mourn the death of kin." He answered, hoping that would satisfy her.

"Of course not, my lord. I merely wished to say that you mourned him as one might mourn a lover." She smiled, and Sesshomaru stood up, youkai flaring dangerously. She bowed in deference. "I am not saying that is bad. Upon seeing the hanyou, I understand why you are so taken with him."

Another councilor spoke up, then. "Indeed, he is more lovely than any demon I have yet seen. His face is pure and without mark."

Sesshomaru growled at him before he could stop himself.

"Ah, see?" Tsubasa continued. "Jealousy."

"This Sesshomaru is not jealous!" He snarled back, quickly on his way to losing his temper.

"Hm. You do not wish others to look at him with desire, though."

"He is my brother, of course not. It would be shameful."

"Indeed." Lady Tsubasa looked infuriatingly unconvinced, and Sesshomaru felt the need to explain himself further.

"Inuyasha has a...disposition that makes many desire to…." he thought about it, trying to put it into words, "to hold him, make him theirs. As a prince of my house, it is unacceptable that he should be looked at in such a way by one lower than his station."

Tsubasa had the audacity to laugh. "Yes, yes, of course, my lord. I look forward to the wedding."

"What-of what do you speak? The hanyou will not wed anybody." Sesshomaru was about three seconds away from tearing of this woman's head. He had just gotten his brother back, and she wished him to give him away in marriage so soon?

"Of course not, my lord. I was mistaken." She bowed, hiding her face from him, and he narrowed his eyes, suspicious. All the same, he was anxious to move on from this topic.

"Ah. I was not aware that your excellency had a submissive brother. Is he related to your other dominant brother?" One of the councillors asked suddenly. Tsubasa rolled her eyes.

"It's the same brother, you nitwit." She snarked. The councillor looked very confused, and Sesshomaru very nearly sighed at his stupidity.

"My submissive brother is Inuyasha. I believe this Sesshomaru, as well as the other demons in his acquaintance had mistaken his designation." He paused, allowing them to digest that. "His headstrong manner was deceiving, but as he raised himself, he was never tested by the Sphere."

"And he has been tested, now?" One of the elder councillors asked.

"He has not yet, however, it has become clear that he could be nothing but submissive. The Sphere would be a mere formality, at this point."

"And why would that be, my lord?"

"Until recently, he was living with, but not mated to, a dominant witch. They were not mated, although they had that sort of relationship. He was unequivocally submissive in that role, and continues to act such, even now."

"That's simply awful. She...she lived with him, but did not mate him?" A councilor asked, sounding doubtful, and Sesshomaru could not blame him. It was rare that a couple stayed together any amount of time without mating. The desire to claim was simply too strong.

"She enjoyed using him, but did not wish to tie herself to him. She had many other lovers, apparently."

"Th-that's awful!"

"The abuse did not end there, but I will not say anymore of my brother's private affairs. Suffice it to say that it was awful, and we are all grateful it is over without any permanent repercussions. That said, the path to healing will be slow, and I expect you all to have the greatest delicacy and care with him in the meantime."

"Of course, Sesshomaru-sama." They bowed as one.

He could not see Tsubasa's face, but he could feel her smirk from where he sat.

.0.

.0.

.0.

Hours later, the conversation had long since moved back to the war effort. They were arguing on where best to send their supplies when there was a knock at the door. Sesshomaru ignored it, continuing his point, and the knock came again. Irritated, he glared at a servant.

"You will tell whoever dares interrupt me that they will not be attended to. This Sesshomaru is not a weak servant, to wait on others. I will see them when it is convenient to me." The servant nodded and scurried out.

There was an annoying amount of commotion on the other side of the door, but he soldiered on, making his points to the group and trying to reach a compromise between factions. The servant scurried in once more, coming to Sesshomaru's side, and waiting for him to attend them. No. This was not happening, he was-

"Dammit, Sesshomaru! I'm not asking for a lot, here!" Inuyasha came bursting in, whimpering baby attached to his finger. He came up short when he saw the room full of councillors, blushing and looking away suddenly. "Uhh….sorry. Didn't mean to interrupt your meeting. I'll just...yeah. I'm just gonna go."

He stomped out, shoulders bunched in humiliation. Sesshomaru watched him leave. He turned back to his councillors. "Excuse me one moment."

"Of course, my Lord," Tsubasa hid a smile.

He glided out of the room as quickly as he could. "Inuyasha! Inuyasha, cease this foolishness!" He called after the hanyou, finally catching up to him and landing in front of him to stop him. "I was under the impression you were a servant. Please, speak."

Inuyasha blinked up at him, eyes even larger than usual. He gave a look of unguarded surprise for a few moments, before his face broke into a scowl. "I'm not a servant."

"I am aware of that. Now, speak. I do not have much time."

"Uh, it's not really...it's nothing big. Just. Yukiko is gettin' pretty hungry. I was wonderin' where the feeder person was." Inuyasha scratched behind his ear in an embarrassed way. There was something very sweet about the way Inuyasha averted his eyes so submissively. It was...appealing, to say the least.

"Ah. And Yukiko is...?" A friend of his perhaps?

"Oh, uh. Tatsuya and I named the baby. Hope ya don't mind." Inuyasha looked up at him through his eyelashes, and his mouth went dry. That was...submission was a good look on his brother, that much was obvious.

"Of course. It is only natural that the baby should have a name." His voice was slightly gravelly, so he coughed to hide it.

"All right! Good." Inuyasha smiled shortly, before sobering up. "And, the feeder person? Cause I've been letting her suck on my finger for now, but I really don't think that'll last that long before she starts crying again."

"I killed the wet nurse this morning." He answered honestly.

"What?!" Inuyasha cried. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath before continuing. "Why'd you do that?"

"He had designs to steal the baby and hold it for ransom. I could not allow that. Besides, his face was displeasing to me."

"What?! He wanted to kidnap her?"

"Yes." Sesshomaru answered, and Inuyasha scrubbed a hand over his face, messing up the bangs.

"Damn. But...really? What are we supposed to do now? Is there another wet nurse somewhere?"

Sesshomaru quirked an eyebrow. It was time to see if the tea had really done its work. "Did you drink your tea at lunchtime, Inuyasha?" He asked, to make sure.

"Yeah, but what does that have to do with anything?"

He smirked. There was a reason he kept the properties of the tea a secret. There was no telling how Inuyasha would react. Now, though, that it was too late. He touched Inuyasha's chest, searching for a nipple. Inuyasha jerked back, but when he growled warningly, the hanyou stopped. When he found a nipple, he pulled at it, grinning as he was rewarded with a few drops of milk, staining the front of Inuyasha's shirt.

"What the hell?!" Inuyasha jumped back as quickly as possible, looking from his chest to Sesshomaru and back again. He grabbed his other nipple, and Sesshomaru saw more milk stain the shirt. "No way. No frickin' way."

When Inuyasha's face returned to Sesshomaru, it was full of anger. He grabbed the nearest thing to him, a small decorative vase, and lobbed it at Sesshomaru's head. The youkai caught it effortlessly.

"You frickin' bastard! What the hell was in that tea!? What did you do to me?!"

"Please, it is not like it is the end of your life. Most submissives drink the tea at their first pregnancy, anyhow." Sesshomaru rolled his eyes.

"Well, I'm not submissive!" Inuyasha threw another vase at Sesshomaru. This time he dodged, and it smashed on the floor behind him. "And I'm not a chick! Undo this!"

"There's no undoing it. The potion transforms your body entirely. From now on, you will lactate whenever you have a baby."

"Have a baby?! Did you give me a uterus or something?!" Inuyasha looked down in horror at his stomach.

"No, that is a much more complex ritual. The tea is simply one that helps you to start lactating. From now on, your body will produce milk for Yukiko, and once she's weaned, it will produce milk for any future babies you might have, should you complete the ritual that would allow you to become pregnant."

"No way! Take it back!"

"Impossible." Sesshomaru lied. "Once your body has gained the ability, there is no removing it."

"What-but-" Inuyasha threw another vase at Sesshomaru. "You total freak! If you wanted her breastfed so badly, why didn't you just drink the tea?!"

"I am a dominant. It is not my place. You are a submissive, it is yours." Sesshomaru sighed, interrupting the beginnings of another tirade from Inuyasha. "I am aware that you do not believe in these designations, so allow me to explain. I will periodically go to battle. I might be gone for weeks, even months at a time. I cannot bring a baby with me, that would be the height of irresponsibility. I could not send milk home, it would spoil in the journey, and take far too long. We cannot allow the child to starve. For these reasons, I cannot be the one to feed Yukiko. We cannot switch, because drinking two different kinds of milk would be unhealthy for the child. In addition, we would both provide an excess of milk that would have to ultimately be consumed by ourselves so it could not be used in a spell against us.

"As I stated before, I do not trust the life of my children in the hands of servants. For this reason, it had to be you. You are their caretaker, you will be the one to feed her."

Inuyasha opened his mouth, then closed it again. He sighed long and hard, muttering something under his breath. Finally, he looked up, eyes full of fire. "Fine. Fine. We're not done here, I'm still mad, and I still think this isn't fair. Also, I'm not a freaking woman, stop trying to turn me into one. But you can go back to your meeting, I'll think about this and settle it with you later."

Sesshomaru nodded. That was acceptable. Actually, better than he had expected. Inuyasha had mellowed over the years. He turned to go back to his meeting. Inuyasha stopped him with a hand pulling at his robes.

"Wait, uh...do you have professional cooks and stuff?"

"I do." Sesshomaru nodded. "However, they cook for me only. I will expect that you cook for yourself and the children, as to prevent poisoning. Use as many taste testers you need, in the process. Anything else?"

"No, I'm fine with cooking. Just, you're a deuchebag. Please. Go screw yourself." Inuyasha gave him two middle fingers and stalked away, obviously still mad about the lactating. Sesshomaru only smiled, and got back to his meeting in higher spirits.

O.

.O

.O.

When the meeting ended, it was already dark. He and his councillors made their ways to the main dining hall. It was customary for nobles in the palace to eat together, although some of the more paranoid lords brought their own food. The wives and children waited for their dominants at the table, food already prepared and set at their plates. Sesshomaru went straight to the head of the table, pleased to have his mate and children already waiting for him, food on their plates.

He noticed there was a bit of food on his, too, and he narrowed his eyes at Inuyasha. "What is this?" He demanded. Inuyasha only shrugged.

"I dunno. I just figured you might want to try it." He answered noncommittally. "To Makesure it's not poisoned, or whatever. You're really paranoid, you know that?"

Sesshomaru nodded. "You noticed the other mates and children of my councillors came bringing their own food. Such precautions are common amongst demons. We should not take risks with the future generations of our seed."

"'Our seed?!'" Inuyasha seemed to be suppressing a laugh at his expense, but he shrugged it off, pleased that Inuyasha was happy, at least, and had forgotten his anger.

Sesshomaru pretended to ignore his mate's mirth, instead turning to dinner. The councillors and weaker lords were waiting for him to take the first bite. He put the food to his mouth, and was surprised by a bust of pleasant flavor. Inuyasha was actually quite a skilled cook. It seemed to just be vegetables and meat cooked in a sauce over rice, but the taste was superb. Tatsuya, for his part, was loving it, shovelling food into his mouth happily. Shippo had a bit more poise, but licked his lips and fingers more than once, grinning at Inuyasha.

It felt like...it felt like family, and that warmed him on the inside. His brother had returned after so many years, and now took care of his children as a true submissive would. Something in that fact warmed his belly, and he reveled in the feeling.

"Hey, Daddy?"

"Yes, Tatsuya?" Sesshomaru answered.

"So, Inuyasha and I, we were deciding on some names earlier today, and I got to name Yukiko, but Inuyasha helped 'cause he said he had beeto power."

"Veto power." Inuyasha corrected, and one of the councillors laghed.

"Oh? I had no idea you knew so much about politics, young master!" Inuyasha grinned at the praise, head raising a bit.

"Yeah, I know a bit." He answered modestly. Sesshomaru privately glowed in pride. "Why don't you tell your dad what you learned, Ta-chan?"

Tatsuya smiled, looking a little too devious for one who was just explaining something.

"Well. Basically, I would have an idea, and Inuyasha would veto it. That meant he was rejecting it. But then he said if I really really wanted the name, then I could go to you, and you would have the final say. Like, I wanted to call Yukiko Firebird the Destroyer, but Inuyasha said 'veto' and so I had to think if I'd get that passed with you or not. I figured it wouldn't, so I just thought of another name."

"That was wise." Sesshomaru answered simply, and Inuyasha laughed lightly.

"Well, looks like your little one is learning the ins and outs of politics already!" One advisor praised.

"He can have my job already, by the looks of it." Another grinned at Tatsuya, who answered,

"Gross! I don't want a boring, grown up job!"

The table laughed. One of the submissives at the table spoke. "But, in all seriousness, it is very good of you, Inuyasha-sama, to teach him these things young. That there is a hierarchy there. Your decision is respected and honored, but the decision of your mate is final."

Inuyasha looked like he was about to argue, but the submissive's husband spoke up easily, before her. "Ah, Darling, I'd told you wrong earlier, I apologize. Inuyasha is not Lord Sesshomaru's mate, but in fact, his long-lost brother."

"Oh. I'm sorry for my assumption. That was presumptuous of me." She bowed, chastened.

"It's very fine, my dear," A female councillor answered, smiling easily at her. "We all had it wrong. They look like such a fetching couple, after all."

"Do they not?" Another submissive mate agreed. He leaned in eagerly. "They both exude such power and beauty-can you imagine the children they would have?"

"They would be beautiful, indeed!"

The table gossipped, and Sesshomaru turned to Inuyasha, squeezing his arm once, before pulling his hand away.

"They love to gossip about little things like this; pay no mind. I have already told them the truth of things."

"Yeah? So why do they keep saying we'd make good mates? We're brothers!" Inuyasha shot back, looking annoyed.

"It is not so uncommon among demons. We are not cursed as humans are, to have defects born between siblings. Incest is quite accepted, if a bit uncommon."

"What?!" Inuyasha hissed.

"Look over there, at the far end of the table. Ladies Kiyoko and Mariane. Lady Kiyoko was the oldest of her sisters, but her younger sister Mariane became her dominant. They have a very happy marriage."

Inuyasha seemed to be choking on his food. "Are you quite alright?" Sesshomaru asked, furrowing his brow.

"Fine. Fine, just...lesbian sisters? And that's okay?"

"I'm not familiar with that word, but yes, it is perfectly acceptable. Of course, a relationship between generations would be wrong. For instance, a father with his daughter or son. But between siblings it is seen as acceptable, even romantic."

"What's romantic about that?!" Inuyasha gagged.

"I am not sure.I can not say I am the expert in such matters."

"Yeah, I should hope not." Inuyasha took a long drink from his glass.

Tsubasa spoke up, then, having overheard the conversation. "Really, my lord? You cannot find the appeal to the idea?" Her eyes were mocking once more.

"No." he answered shortly.

"Yeah, I really don't get it." Inuyasha added. "What's romantic about it?"

"The reason incestuous relations are uncommon is simple. Growing up with someone, you see their flaws, their insecurity, even their weakness. To love them, even despite that, is truly profound."

Inuyasha just looked at her, confused. "Yeahhhh, I don't think I'm really going to get that anytime soon. Still pretty freaking weird."

Sesshomaru was quick to correct him. "My brother was raised among humans, he does not understand our ways. He means no offense, ladies Kiyoko and Mariane."

"None taken, my lord."

Sesshomaru slapped the back of Inuyasha's head lightly, when everybody had turned back to their food.

"Ow! What was that for?!"

"Try to have a bit more tact, hanyou. I will not have you insulting my most trusted advisors."

"Okay, okay! Jeez, I was just saying."

"Well, kindly do not." Sesshomaru glared, but a tug at his sleeve interrupted him.

"Wait, Dad, I wasn't done, though!" Tatsuya whined.

"Ah, yes? Proceed, then. What name did you want me to approve?"

"It's…" Tatsuya looked away nervously, fiddling with his fork, before summoning his courage and turning back to Sesshomaru. "It's for Inuyasha. I wanted to call him Mama, but he vetoed it, so I wanted to ask you if it was okay."

Ah. That was all?"Of course it's okay, son. It is only natural that you should call him such."

"What! Sesshomaru!" Inuyasha pulled at his sleeve, now, angrier. "I told you, I'm not a chick! I don't wanna be called Mama!"

"Why ever not?" Sesshomaru blinked at him.

"Because! I'm not his mom! I'm not a chick! I mean, if he wanted to call me 'uncle', sure, but...I mean Uncle Inuyasha sounds kinda skeevy, but-"

"That is because it is. Very well, Tatsuya. You will not be able to call Inuyasha your mother until he is comfortable with that."

"Okay." Tatsuya looks horribly disappointed. "Sorry, Inuyasha."

Sesshomaru turned back to his meal, giving Inuyasha a pointed look, first, as if to say, 'see what you did?'

Inuyasha ignored him, sulking as he ate his dinner.


End file.
